SOCIAL  PRINCIPLES 
OF  EDUCATION 

GEORGE  H.  BETTS 


LIBRARY 

UNIVERSITY  OF 
CALIFORNIA 

SAN  DIEGO 


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SOCIAL  PRINCIPLES  OF  EDUCATION 


SOCIAL    PRINCIPLES 
OF    EDUCATION 


BY 

GEORGE  HERBERT  JBgTTS,  Pn.D. 

PROFESSOR    OF   PSYCHOLOGY  IN  CORNELL  COLLEGE,  IOWA 


NEW  YORK 

CHARLES   SCRIBNER'S   SONS 
1912 


Copyright,  1912,  by 
CHARLES  SCRIBNER'S  SONS 


TO    MY  WIFE 

THROUGH    WHOSE   HELP   THE 

WRITING    OF    THE    FOLLOWING   PAGES 

WAS   MADE.  POSSIBLE 


PREFACE 

EDUCATION  is  an  ever-changing  ideal;  hence  concepts 
of  educational  values  and  methods  are  in  a  state  of  con- 
stant reconstruction;  and  the  aim  of  education  must 
be  progressively  redefined.  The  direction  of  this  recon- 
struction varies  from  age  to  age  in  accordance  with  the 
trend  of  thought.  At  one  time  education  is  valued  for 
its  contribution  to  religion;  again,  as  a  means  of  pre- 
paring a  favored  few  for  leisure  or  leadership;  and  at 
another  time  for  its  results  in  enlightenment,  discipline, 
or  culture  in  the  life  of  the  individual. 

The  present  demand  upon  education,  though  but  half 
denned  in  social  consciousness,  is  that  it  shall  relate 
itself  immediately  to  the  concrete  and  vital  experience 
of  all  as  they  carry  out  the  activities  that  constitute 
their  life-process.  Such  values  as  knowledge,  culture, 
power,  no  longer  satisfy  the  educational  ideal;  these 
must  in  some  way  combine  to  spell  efficiency.  Nor  is 
this  efficiency  something  fanciful  or  unreal,  but  rather 
the  power  and  the  will  to  become  an  active,  helpful  con- 
tributor to  the  social  welfare  of  the  present.  Education 
is  therefore  a  social  function,  and  educational  values  are 

to  be  measured  in  terms  of  social  efficiency. 

vii 


viii  PREFACE 

It  is  the  purpose  of  this  volume  to  formulate  the  social 
concept  of  education;  to  offer  some  help,  however  slight, 
toward  bringing  the  social  meaning  of  education  more 
clearly  to  consciousness;  to  make  a  tentative  statement 
of  the  social  principles  underlying  the  educational  aim 
and  process.  Much  work  has  been  done  in  recent  years 
in  the  field  of  the  general  principles  of  education.  Dif- 
ferentiation has  been  working  out  until  we  now  have  a 
more  or  less  clearly  denned  set  of  biological,  psycholog- 
ical, and  philosophical  principles.  The  social  principles 
of  education  have  been  less  fully  developed.  Much  good 
work  has  been  done,  but  a  complete  and  coherent  state- 
ment has  not  yet  been  accomplished,  if  indeed  such  has 
been  attempted.  On  the  other  hand,  it  is  doubtful 
whether  the  material  is  yet  available  for  anything  like 
a  full  or  final  statement  in  this  field.  It  will  not  be 
expected,  therefore,  that  the  present  work  will  aim  at 
completeness  or  finality. 

The  plan  of  the  volume  is  simple.  The  individual  and 
society  are  conceived  as  the  two  fundamental  elements  in 
the  educational  process;  hence  their  relations  and  the 
part  each  plays  in  the  common  life-process  are  discussed. 
Since  all  conscious  evolution  must  be  guided  by  pur- 
pose, the  aim  of  education  is  next  considered.  The  edu- 
cational aim  is  found  to  originate  in  and  lead  back  to 
the  social  process.  This  necessitates  an  analysis  of  the 
social  process  to  discover  what  demands  the  different 
social  activities  put  upon  education.  But  education 


PREFACE  ix 

accomplishes  its  purpose  only  through  changes  wrought 
in  the  individual.  It  is  necessary,  therefore,  to  consider 
the  powers  and  capacities  of  the  individual  which  enable 
him  to  fit  into  the  social  process.  Education  works 
upon  these  powers  and  capacities  in  the  course  of  their 
genetic  development;  so  the  mode  of  individual  develop- 
ment is  considered.  The  means  that  education  employs 
in  utilizing  the  powers  and  capacities  of  the  individual 
to  fit  him  into  the  social  process,  and  thereby  to  accom- 
plish the  ideal  relations  between  the  individual  and  soci- 
ety are  next  to  be  sought.  These  are  found  to  consist 
in  the  curriculum  and  the  social  organization  of  the  school. 

CORNELL  COLLEGE, 
MOUNT  VERNON,  IOWA, 
July,  1912. 


CONTENTS 


I.    INTRODUCTION 3 

7.  The  Nature  of  Philosophy. — i.  Its  organizing  function. 
2.  Its  various  fields.  3.  Its  method. 

77.  The  Scope  of  the  Present  Work. — i.  Limitations  as  to 
its  scope.  2.  Its  purpose. 

PART  I 

EDUCATIONAL  ELEMENTS  AND  AIM 
II.    THE  INDIVIDUAL  AND  SOCIETY 5 

7.  The  Interdependence  of  the  Individual  and  Society. — i. 
Various  concepts  as  to  this  relationship.  2.  The  individ- 
ualistic concept.  3.  The  socialistic  concept.  4.  The  or- 
ganic concept.  5.  The  nature  of  the  social  bond. 

77.  The  Contributions  of  Society  to  the  Individual. — i. 
Society  supplies  the  individual  with  a  medium  for  his 
development.  2.  Society  stimulates  the  individual  to 
activity.  3.  A  set  of  organized  activities  provided  by 
society.  4.  Society  sets  before  the  individual  criteria  of 
conduct.  5.  Social  obligation  to  educate  the  individual. 

777.  The  Contributions  of  the  Individual  to  Society. — i. 
The  nature  of  the  individual  makes  society  possible.  2. 
The  individual  is  the  bearer  of  all  social  culture.  3.  In- 
dividual, initiative  makes  social  progress  possible.  4. 
The  individual's  obligation  to  attain  social  efficiency. 

III.    AIM  IN  EDUCATION:  ITS  ORIGIN  AND  FUNCTION      32 

7.  The  General  Nature  of  Aim. — i.  All  progress  depend- 
ent on  change.  2.  But  change,  to  be  progress,  must  be 
directed.  3.  In  the  lower  realms  of  being,  the  directive 
principle  works  from  without.  4.  But  in  man,  teleology 
has  become  conscious  and  intelligent.  5.  Ability  to  con- 


xii  CONTENTS 

CHAPTER  PAGE 

ceive  an  aim  and  select  means  for  its  attainment  as  a 
measure  of  stage  reached  in  evolution. 

II.  Aim  to  Be  Found  Only  in  Experience. — i.  Aim  cannot 
be  divorced  from  experience.     2.  The  nature  of  experi- 
ence.   3.  Experience  as  a  process.     4.  Experience  as  a 
product.    5.  The  function  of  experience. 

III.  Education  as  a  Selective  Agent  in  the  Social  Process. 
— i.  The  complexity  of  the  social  process  makes  some 
selective  agent  necessary.     2.  Education  rises  out  of  the 
consciousness  of  aim,  and  as  a  means  to  its  attainment. 
3.  Organized  and  unorganized  educational  factors. 

IV.  The  Educational  Aim  but  a  Statement  of  the  Social 
Progress  Already  Made. — i.  The  educational  aim  and  the 
social  aim  identical.     2.  The  educational  aim  must  there- 
fore be  defined  in  terms  of  the  social  process.     3.  The 
futility  of  educational  aims  conceived  as  outside  the 
social  process.     4.  The  tendency  of  social  institutions  to 
become  divorced  from  the  social  aim. 

PART  II 

THE  SOCIAL  PROCESS  AND  EDUCATION 
IV.    THE  NATURE  OF  THE  SOCIAL  PROCESS       .    .      51 

I.  The  Nature  of  the  Social  Process  to  Be  Shown  Either 
from  the  Social  or  the  Individual  Point  of  View. 

II.  A  Complete  Interpretation  of  the  Social  Process  In- 
volves Past,  Present,  and  Future. 

HI.  An  Outline  View  All  that  Is  Required  in  the  Present 
Study. 

V.    EDUCATION  AND  INSTITUTIONAL  MODES  OF  EX- 
PERIENCE  55 

7.  Institutions  the  Product  of  Social  Evolution. — i.  The 
nature  of  social  institutions.  2.  Institutions  both  the 
product  and  mode  of  social  progress.  3.  Individual  ex- 
perience included  within  institutional  activities. 

77.  The  Family  and  the  Individual. — i.  The  nature  of  the 
family.  2.  The  fundamental  relations  in  the  home.  3. 
Recent  social  changes  affecting  the  home  as  an  educa- 


CONTENTS  xiii 

IAPTER  PAGE 

tional  factor.  4.  Losses  suffered  by  the  home  through 
these  changes.  5.  New  demands  placed  upon  the  home 
relations.  6.  The  home  included  in  the  educational  aim. 

777.  The  Community  as  an  Educative  Factor. — i.  Social 
relationships  afforded  by  the  community.  2.  Influences 
exerted  by  the  community.  3.  Decline  of  community 
life.  4.  Obligations  resting  on  the  community  as  an  ed- 
ucative factor. 

IV.  The  Church  as  a  Social  Institution. — i.  The  church 
and  the  religious  concept.     2.  The  social  programme  of 
the  church.     3.  The  church  and  general  education.    4. 
The  church  and  religious   education.     5.  The   present 
opportunity  of  the  church.     6.  The  educational  aim  as 
related  to  the  church. 

V.  The  State  and  the  Educational  Aim. — i.     The  place  of 
the  state  among  social  institutions.     2.  The  negative 
functions  of  the  state.     3.  The  positive  functions  of  the 
state.     4.  Democracy  and  the  individual.     5.  Education 
and  the  foes  of  the  state. 

VI.  The  School  as  the  Instrument  of  Education. — i.  The 
place  of  the  school  in  the  social  process.     2.  The  measure 
of  educational  waste.    3.  Sources  of  educational  waste. 
4.  The  school  as  the  complement  of  other  educative  agen- 
cies.    5.  Bases  of  co-operation  between  the  school  and 
other  institutions. 

VI.    EDUCATION  AND  VOCATIONAL  MODES  OF  EX- 
PERIENCE   95 

7.  Vocations  as  a  Mode  of  Social  Evolution. — i.  Man  is  by 
nature  a  worker.  2.  The  origin  of  vocations.  3.  The  in- 
terrelations of  the  vocations  as  a  social  bond. 

77.  The  Industrial  Vocations. — i.  The  fundamental  na- 
ture of  the  industrial  pursuits.  2.  The  industrial  voca- 
tions late  to  be  included  in  the  educational  aim.  3.  The 
problem  created  by  the  division  of  labor. 

777.  The  Business  Vocations. — i.  The  functions  of  the 
business  vocations.  2.  The  relation  of  business  to  the 
industries.  3.  The  two-fold  problem  of  the  business 
vocations.  4.  The  business  vocations  as  related  to  the 
educational  aim. 


xiv  CONTENTS 

CHAPTER  PAGE 

IV.  The  Technological  Pursuits. — i.  The  relation  of  the 
technological  pursuits  to  other  vocations.     2.  Contribu- 
tions of  the  technologist  to  social  welfare.     3.  The  edu- 
cation of  technological  workers. 

V.  The  Scientific  Pursuits. — i.  The  nature  of  the  scien- 
tific pursuits.     2.  The  relation  of  the  scientist  to  other 
workers.     3.  Education  for  the  scientific  vocations. 

VI.  The  Professional  Pursuits. — i.  The  rise  of  profes- 
sional pursuits.     2.  The  function  of  professional  pur- 
suits.   3.  The  type  of  education  required  for  profes- 
sional pursuits. 

VII.  The  Vocation  of  the  Artist. — i.  The  social  function 
of  the  artist.     2.  The  artist  as  a  teacher.     3.  Education 
and  the  art  impulse. 

VII.    EDUCATION  AND  AVOCATIONAL  MODES  OF  EX- 
PERIENCE   114 

7.  The  Place  of  Avocations  in  the  Social  Process. — i. 
Avocations  as  much  a  matter  of  social  concern  as  voca- 
tions. 2.  The  physical  necessity  for  avocations.  3.  The 
mental  necessity  for  avocations.  4.  Social  development 
through  avocations.  5.  The  relation  of  avocations  to 
moral  development.  6.  The  relation  of  play  and  work. 

II.  Classes  of  Avocations. — i.  Difficulty  of  making  such  a 
classification.  2.  The  physical  avocations.  3.  Avoca- 
tions involving  chiefly  mental  activities.  4.  The  social 
avocations.  5.  Incidental  avocations. 

777.  The  School  and  Its  Avocations. — i.  The  school  must 
meet  the  problem  of  avocations.  2.  Avocations  as  a  part 
of  the  school's  activities.  3.  Work  must  be  the  centre  of 
the  school's  activities. 

PART  III 

SOCIALIZING  THE  INDIVIDUAL 

VIII.    THE  POWERS  AND  CAPACITIES  OF  THE  INDI- 
VIDUAL      133 

7.  The  Social  Nature  of  Individual  Powers  and  Capaci- 
ties.— i.  The  nature  of  the  social  process  defined  by  the 
powers  and  capacities  of  the  individual.  2.  The  powers 


CONTENTS  xv 

CHAPTER  PAGE 

and  capacities  of  the  individual  the  product  of  social  par- 
ticipation. 

II.  Capacities  of  the  Individual  for  Impressions. — i.  Im- 
pressions a  fundamental  biological  necessity.     2.  Scope 
of  environment  measured  by  capacity  for  impressions. 
3.  Capacity  for  direct,  or  physical,  impressions.     4.  Ca- 
pacity for  indirect,  or  social,  impressions. 

III.  Capacities  for  Interpretation. — i.  The  part  played 
by  interpretation  in  adaptation.     2.  Interpretation  in 
terms  of  knowledge,  leading  to  the  sciences.    3.  Inter- 
pretation in  terms  of  feeling,  leading  to  appreciation  of 
values. 

IV.  Powers  of  Control. — i.  Control  the  outcome  of  im- 
pression and  interpretation.     2.  Control  over  the  self, 
leading  to  adjustment.    3.  Control  exercised  through  the 
physical.    4.  Mental  aspects  of  control  over  the  self.     5. 
Control  through  the  moral  aspects  of  the  self.     6.  Con- 
trol over  environment,  leading  to  progress.     7.  Mastery 
of  environment  through  science  and  technique. 

IX.    THE  MODE  OF  INDIVIDUAL  DEVELOPMENT    .    .     192 

1.  The  General  Nature  of  Development. — i.  Development 
conditioned  by  the  original  nature  of  the  individual.     2. 
The  dependence  of  development  on  adequate  stimuli.     3. 
One  function  of  education  is  to  supply  stimuli. 

II.  The  Inherent  Attributes  of  the  Individual  Influencing 
Development. — i.  The  individualistic  nature  of  response. 

2.  Plasticity  the  first  requisite  to  development.     3.  Self- 
activity  defines  the  process  of  development.    4.  Instincts 
and  impulses  the  motives  to  activity.     5.  Imitation,  sug- 
gestion, and  language  determine  the  course  of  develop- 
ment.   6.  The  desire  for  self-realization  a  motive  in  later 
development. 

///.  The  Social  Stimulus  to  Individual  Development. — i. 
Response  primarily  individualistic,  but  the  stimuli  chiefly 
social.  2.  The  social  points  of  contact  with  physical  en- 
vironment. 3.  Influence  of  the  Zeitgeist  in  determining 
direction  of  development.  4.  The  unorganized  sources 
of  educational  stimuli.  5.  The  organized  sources  of 
educational  stimuli.  6.  The  function  of  the  school  to 
organize  and  present  stimuli. 


xvi  CONTENTS 

CHAPTER  PAGE 

X.    THE  CURRICULUM 231 

I.  The  Social  Origin  of  the  Curriculum. — i.  The  social 
evolution  of  culture  and  civilization.     2.  The  great  mass 
of  culture  renders  selection  necessary.    3.  The  curricu- 
lum embodies  the  social  ideal  of  culture  values. 

II.  The  Function  of  the  Curriculum. — i.  The  curriculum 
develops  the  social  consciousness.     2.  The  curriculum 
provides  stimuli  leading  to  development.     3.  Social  ad- 
justment secured  through  the  curriculum.     4.  The  con- 
cept of  social  efficiency  versus  that  of  discipline. 

///.  The  Content  of  the  Curriculum. — i.  The  content  of 
the  curriculum  determined  by  its  function.  2.  The 
growth  of  a  broader  curriculum.  3.  The  influence  of 
tradition  in  determining  the  curriculum.  4.  Professional 
influence  in  the  curriculum.  5.  The  response  of  the  cur- 
riculum to  social  demands.  6.  The  curriculum  still  dom- 
inated largely  by  disciplinary  concept.  7.  The  present 
curriculum  as  related  to  social  demands. 

IV.  The  Organization  of  the  Curriculum. — i.  The  con  tent 
of  the  curriculum  social,  but  the  organization,  psycholog- 
ical. 2.  The  psychological  versus  the  logical  organiza- 
tion of  the  curriculum.  3.  The  social  activities  the  basis 
of  the  organization  of  the  curriculum.  4.  The  organiza- 
tion of  the  elementary  curriculum.  5.  The  organization 
of  the  high-school  curriculum. 

XI.    THE  SOCIAL  ORGANIZATION  OF  THE  SCHOOL     .    291 

I.  The  Social  Nature  of  the  School. — i.  The  school  as  a 
miniature  society.     2.  The  principle  of  organization  in- 
herent in  the  school.  . 

II.  The  Social  Spirit  of  tJte  School. — i.  The  importance 
of  the  pupil's  attitude  toward  the  school.     2.  The  lack 
of  unity  between  pupils  and  school.     3.  Educational 
waste  through  lack  of  unity.     4.  The  source  of  disunity 
to  be  found  in  the  organization  of  the  school.     5.  The 
intellectual  and  the  social  organization  of  the  school. 

III.  The  Organization  of  the  Elementary  School. — i.  The 
continuous  nature  of  experience.     2.  Relations  between 
home  experience  and  school  experience.    3.  Factors  af- 
fecting continuity  of  experience  between  home  and  school. 


CONTENTS  xvii 

PACE 

4.  Loss  in  efficiency  through  placing  too  many  children 
under  one  teacher.  5.  Points  of  contact  between  parents 
and  school.  6.  The  school  as  an  intellectual  and  social 
centre  for  the  community. 

IV.  The  Organization  of  the  High  School. — i.  Principles 
of  social  organization  that  apply  both  to  elementary  and 
high  school.  2.  The  school  not  to  prepare  for  life,  but 
a  place  to  live.  3.  The  problems  of  high-school  organi- 
zation grow  out  of  the  psychology  of  adolescence.  4. 
The  attitude  of  the  adolescent  toward  conduct  and  au- 
thority. 5.  The  organization  of  personal  control  of  con- 
duct. 6.  Problems  growing  out  of  the  social  relations 
of  the  sexes.  7.  Social  efficiency  the  aim  of  the  social 
as  well  as  the  intellectual  organization  of  the  high  school. 

INDEX 315 


SOCIAL  PRINCIPLES  OF  EDUCATION 


INTRODUCTION 

The  problem  of  philosophy  is  to  bring  to  light  new 
and  more  profound  meanings.  Philosophy  seeks  to  find 
in  the  world  as  a  whole  a  broader  and  richer 
philosophy™  f  significance  through  discovering  the  ulti- 
mate and  vital  relations  which  exist  among 
its  parts.  It  tries  so  to  organize  and  unify  experience 
that  it  may  possess  the  richest  and  fullest  reality  pos- 
sible. Philosophy  attempts  to  fit  part  to  part  in  the 
great  mosaic  of  creation,  confident  that  the  meaning  of 
the  whole  and  of  each  part  will  appear  when  the  pattern 
is  complete. 

The  scope  of  philosophy  is,  therefore,  as  broad  as  the 
universe;  its  limits  are  set  only  by  the  reach  of  the  mind 
in  its  search  for  truth.  Hence  philosophy 
philosophy.0  must  enter  every  field  known  to  man; 
nothing  is  foreign  to  its  interest,  and  noth- 
ing too  trivial  or  too  important  for  its  consideration. 
And  when  philosophy  shall  have  fulfilled  its  task,  we  shall 
have  a  special  philosophy  for  each  particular  field:  a 
philosophy  of  history,  of  politics,  of  religion,  of  science, 
of  education,  and  as  many  other  fields  as  there  are  divi- 
sions of  human  activity;  we  shall  also  have  a  general 
philosophy  showing  the  interrelations  among  these  fields, 

3 


4  SOCIAL  PRINCIPLES  OF  EDUCATION 

and  organizing  them  into  one  great  unity.  The  method 
of  philosophy  is  the  same  in  each  of  the  many  fields  it 
enters:  it  seeks  to  relate  the  parts  of  the  field  to  each 
other,  and  to  relate  the  special  field  to  the  larger  whole. 
Applying  this  method  to  education,  the  philosophy  of 
education  seeks  the  true  meaning  of  education  by  defining 
its  elements,  and  discovering  its  place  in  that  larger  whole 
which  we  call  the  social  process. 

The  plan  of  the  present  work  does  not  include  a  com- 
plete philosophy  of  education,  which  would  require  a 
discussion  of  the  relations  and  meaning  of 
education  in  each  of  its  many  aspects,  such 
as  the  biological,  the  psychological,  the  his- 
torical, and  the  social.  Our  purpose  is  rather  the  nar- 
rower and  more  immediate  one  of  discovering  and  apply- 
ing the  philosophical  principles  underlying  the  last  of 
these  fields,  the  social  aspect  of  education.  It  must  be 
kept  in  mind,  however,  that  education  is  primarily  a 
unity  in  actual  experience,  and  that  these  different 
phases  do  not  exist  apart.  They  are  separated  only  for 
purposes  of  discussion  and  emphasis.  In  the  following 
pages,  therefore,  constant  reference  will  be  made  to  the 
biological,  the  psychological,  and  the  historical  factors 
in  education,  but  always  with  reference  to  their  bearing 
upon  its  social  aim  and  significance. 


PART  I 
EDUCATIONAL  ELEMENTS  AND  AIM 

CHAPTER  II 

THE  INDIVIDUAL  AND  SOCIETY 

The  fundamental  terms  with  which  the  social  princi- 
ples of  education  have  to  deal  are  two,  the  individual  and 
society.  It  is  through  the  interrelations  of 
and  sodety  the  tne  individual  and  society  that  the  necessity 
fundamental  for  education  arises,  and  that  education  is 
made  possible.  For  if  individuals  did  not 
constitute  an  organized  society;  if  each 
person  lived  encased  in  an  impenetrable  shell  of  self- 
sufficiency;  if  there  were  no  bond  uniting  all  together 
in  one  common  set  of  activities  and  one  common  des- 
tiny; if  there  were  no  common  ideal  toward  which  all 
are  striving — then  there  would  be  no  need  for  education. 
For  the  need  for  education  arises  at  the  points  where 
life  touches  life  hi  social  activities,  and  the  subject- 
matter  of  education  has  its  origin  in  the  solution  of 
these  social  problems.  Since  the  problem  of  education 
is  the  problem  of  the  interrelations  of  the  individual 
and  society,  it  will  be  well  at  the  outset  of  our  study 
to  consider  something  of  the  nature  and  relations  of 
these  factors. 

5 


SOCIAL  PRINCIPLES  OF  EDUCATION 


7.    Interrelations  of  the  Individual  and  Society 
_  ,   .     t.  Various  concepts  of  the  relation  of  the  in- 

Relationship  •••••«          i          •          i  1-1 

between  the  dividual  and  society  have  obtained  at  dif- 
indjviduai  and  ferent  times.  The  relative  importance  of 
one  or  the  other  has  been  emphasized  as 
the  socialistic  or  the  individualistic  view  has  happened  to 
prevail  in  the  thought  of  the  time. 

The  individualistic  concept  holds  that  the  individual  is 
the  ultimate  and  all-important  factor  in  the  relationship. 
The  His  interests  are  supreme,  and  his  rights 

"  individual-  are  higher  than  the  rights  of  society.  Soci- 
istic"  concept  ^  jg  ^^  an  "aggregation  of  individuals," 
with  the  emphasis  on  individuals.  There  is  no  such  thing 
as  common  good  when  it  comes  into  conflict  with  in- 
dividual liberty.  Such  a  society  lacks  a  unifying  bond  or 
organizing  element  to  hold  it  together,  and  hence  cannot 
endure.  Historically  the  individualistic  concept  has 
been  of  great  service  in  emphasizing  and  establishing  the 
dignity  and  worth  of  individual  personality.  But,  carried 
to  its  logical  outcome,  this  concept  gives  us  as  its  sequel 
a  group  of  victorious  and  blood-crazed  French  Revolution- 
ists turning  and  rending  each  other  when  they  have  tri- 
umphed over  their  foe.  It  is  impossible  permanently  to 
base  a  society  on  an  individualistic  concept,  for  the  out- 
come of  such  a  relationship  of  the  individual  and  society 
can  only  be  anarchy  and  dissolution. 

The  socialistic1  concept  in  its  most  extreme  form  leads 
to  the  view  that  "man  is  a  mere  abstraction,  and  there 
is  nothing  real  but  humanity."  If  a  conflict  should  occur 

1The  terra  "socialistic"  is  here  used  as  the  opposite  of  "individualis- 
tic," and  with  no  other  meaning. 


THE  INDIVIDUAL  AND   SOCIETY  7 

between  the  immediate  interests  of  the  individual  and  so- 
ciety, the  individual  must  give  way.  The  individual  does 
The  not  count  as  against  the  interests  of  society, 

"  socialistic  "  and  he  has  no  rights  which  society  is  bound, 
just  because  they  are  his,  to  respect.  If 
society  demands  that  the  child  shall  be  taken  from  home 
at  the  age  of  seven  years  and  trained  only  in  the  calling 
of  a  soldier,  the  individual  has  no  choice  but  to  submit 
— and  Sparta  is  the  result.  If  that  more  powerful  part 
of  society  living  on  a  higher  social  plane  wills  that  the 
weaker  who  live  on  a  lower  social  plane  shall  be  made 
slaves,  in  order  to  give  wealth  and  leisure  to  the  higher 
and  more  powerful,  then  the  interests  and  welfare  of 
the  enslaved  are  not  to  be  taken  into  account. 

In  its  less  extreme  form,  the  socialistic  concept  does 
not  so  ruthlessly  sacrifice  the  individual.  The  interests 
A  modified  form  of  society  still  come  first,  but  it  is  recog- 
of  the  sociaiis-  nized  that  society  can  secure  its  own  in- 
terests without  trampling  on  those  of  the 
individual.  In  this  modified  concept,  the  interests  of 
the  individual  and  society  are  not  wholly  common,  but 
they  are  not  as  a  rule  antagonistic.  Society  begins  to 
consider  the  individual;  he  is  taking  on  a  value  in  his 
own  right.  He  is  now  educated  by  society  chiefly  be- 
cause the  welfare  of  society  demands  it,  but  also  in  some 
degree  because  it  is  good  for  the  individual.  He  is  pun- 
ished when  he  becomes  an  offender  primarily  for  the 
protection  of  society,  but  also  in  the  hope  that  it  may  do 
the  individual  himself  some  good.  The  interests  of  the 
two  are  not  yet  felt  to  be  identical.  Two  distinct  and 
relatively  independent  orders  do  exist:  the  social  order 
which  must  in  all  cases  prevail,  and  the  individual  order 
which  must  always  give  way  at  the  points  of  conflict. 


8  SOCIAL  PRINCIPLES  OF  EDUCATION 

No  social  organization  based  on  this  false  concept  of 
the  relationship  of  the  individual  and  society  can  finally 
The  socialistic  succeed.  Such  an  element  of  strain  in  their 
concept  inade-  relations  must  prove  fatal  to  the  develop- 
ment of  both.  While  it  is  true  that  society 
must  seek  to  promote  the  common  welfare,  yet  this  must 
include  the  welfare  of  every  individual.  For  there  is  an 
individuality  in  all  men,  high  and  low,  that  has  its  rights, 
and  that  must  be  held  sacred  by  society.  The  individ- 
ual has  in  him  the  seeds  of  personal  freedom,  and  must 
finally  come  to  his  own.  Universal  democracy  covering 
the  whole  range  of  social  relationships  must  ultimately 
prevail,  else  man  is  a  craven  and  civilization  a  failure. 

Plato  saw  clearly  the  fallacy  of  both  the  individualistic 
and  the  socialistic  concept,  and  their  fallacy  has  been 
more  fully  exposed  in  the  writings  of 
Hobbes,  Spencer,  and  many  other  philoso- 
ests  of  society  phers.  There  can  be  no  real  conflict  be- 
vfduaJL6  tween  the  interests  of  the  individual  and 

the  interests  of  society.  When  there  is 
seeming  conflict  it  is  either  because  the  interests  of  one 
or  the  other  are  not  understood,  or  else  there  is  failure  in 
adjustment  between  the  two. 

The  realizing  of  this  truth  has  led  to  the  development 
of  the  organic  concept  of  the  relation  of  the  individual 
and  society.  Plato  conceived  society  as  an 
organism,  and  individuals  as  organs  or  mem- 
bers of  the  social  body.  Spencer  has  carried 
this  biological  analogy  out  in  great  detail  in  his  social 
philosophy.  The  analogy  is  very  attractive,  and  the 
concept  has  been  useful  in  emphasizing  the  indentity 
of  interests  between  society  and  the  individual,  and  the 
community  of  interests  between  individuals.  With  this 


THE  INDIVIDUAL  AND   SOCIETY  9 

concept  'in  mind  it  is  easy  to  understand  that  if  we  are 
members  one  of  another,  then  one  member  cannot  suffer 
without  the  others  suffering  with  it;  or,  presenting 
another  phase  of  the  same  truth,  that 

"All  are  needed  by  each  one; 
Nothing  is  fair  or  good  alone." 

Nevertheless,  a  danger,  or  at  least  an  inadequacy, 
lurks  in  the  biological  concept  of  the  relations  of  the  in- 
Dangerof  push-  dividual  and  society.  For  in  the  biological 
ing  the  organic  organism  the  separate  organs  do  not  pos- 
anaiogy  too  far.  sesg  ^  inherent  power  of  activity  and  self- 
direction;  the  organs  or  members  do  not  develop  into 
persons;  they  respond  blindly  and  without  intelligence  to 
stimuli  which  they  cannot  control  or  resist.  Society,  on 
the  other  hand,  is  constituted  of  self-conscious  and  at 
least  partially  self-directive  individuals,  each  with  a  per- 
sonality striving  for  development  and  expression,  and 
each  a  functional  element  in  a  larger  functional  whole. 

Viewed  from  the  dynamic  standpoint,  society  is  not  a 
thing,  but  a  process.  The  social  process  is  made  up  of  the 
Society  more  ^e  Process  of  au<  the  individuals  constitut- 
than  the  sum  of  ing  society — all  the  thoughts,  the  feelings, 
ts  parts.  tjie  activities  Of  the  participants  hi  the  great 

complex  that  we  call  the  day's  life.  But  the  social  proc- 
ess is  something  more  than  a  mere  aggregate  of  the  life- 
processes  of  individuals.  For  the  lives  of  individuals  do 
not  run  along  like  so  many  parallel  streams,  each  un- 
touched by  the  other.  There  is  a  constant  interplay  of 
life  upon  life,  a  constant  interlinking  of  destiny  to  des- 
tiny, a  constant  interlocking  of  force  to  force  until  the 
currents  of  the  great  social  stream  are  all  woven  together 


10  SOCIAL  PRINCIPLES  OF  EDUCATION 

like  a  great  network  of  capillaries.  And,  just  as  an  ani- 
mal is  more  than  the  sum  of  its  organs,  because  through 
them  it  has  life,  so  society  is  more  than  the  sum  of  its 
individuals,  because  out  of  their  interrelations  it  has 
spirit,  life — Zeitgeist. 

This  Zeitgeist  is  more  than  an  expression  of  the  life  or 
spirit  of  society;  it  is  in  turn  an  organizing,  unifying 
Necessity  for  factor,  tending  to  bind  society  together  and 
an  organizing  to  mould  individuals  after  one  common  so- 
factor.  cjaj  pUrpOse  jror  society  does  not  just 

happen  to  hold  together  in  the  working  out  of  a  common 
social  life  and  purpose,  any  more  than  the  particles  of 
the  earth  merely  happen  to  stick  together  instead  of  fly- 
ing separately  out  into  space.  Each  requires  an  integrat- 
ing, organizing  force  suited  to  the  requirements  of  its 
own  particular  realm.  The  result  of  this  unifying  social 
force  is  an  organic  society,  whose  watchwords  are  unity 
and  progress. 

The  bond  which  holds  society  together  in  one  unitary 
process  is  not  homogeneous  and  simple,  but  is  marvel- 
The  social  lously  complex.  It  has  its  rise  in  the  mul- 
bond  a  subjec-  tiplicity  of  interrelations  at  all  the  mul- 

tive  principle.       ^  ^^  where  ^  touches  Hfe  in  fa 

social  process.  The  unifying  bond  comes  from  within, 
and  not  from  without;  it  is  implanted  in  the  nature  of 
man,  and  not  forced  upon  him  as  an  afterthought.  It 
is  not,  therefore,  governments,  nor  armies,  nor  such  nat- 
ural barriers  as  mountains  or  oceans,  that  hold  society 
together;  but  rather  an  organizing,  teleological,  sub- 
jective principle  working  in  the  individual.  This  prin- 
ciple expresses  itself  more  or  less  blindly  in  the  earlier 
stages  of  social  development,  and  has  not  even  yet  risen 
fully  to  consciousness  in  man. 


THE  INDIVIDUAL  AND   SOCIETY  11 

Various  attempts  have  been  made  to  discover  the  nat- 
ure of  this  social  bond,  and  to  formulate  it  under  one 
comprehensive  term.    Some  have  conceived 

f°rce  as  the  great  unifying  principle;  peo- 
ple are  held  together  only  because  of  the 
strong  hand  of  those  in  power  over  them.  Others  have 
said  that  it  is  economic  necessity;  man  cannot  success- 
fully cope  with  the  forces  of  nature  and  secure  for  him- 
self a  living  from  the  earth  except  in  co-operation  with 
other  men.  Others  look  upon  religion  as  the  tie  that 
binds  all  together;  the  thought  of  an  overruling  provi- 
dence and  our  common  dependence  and  common  des- 
tiny weld  us  into  a  unity.  Others  say  that  thought  is  the 
great  bond;  we  are  held  together  by  the  fact  that  we 
conceive  our  world  in  its  meanings  and  realities,  and  our 
relations  to  them  in  the  same  light.  Others  have  made 
very  plausible  the  claims  of  like-mindedness  as  the  unify- 
ing element;  it  is  the  fact  that  we  are  alike,  the  fellow 
feeling  that  comes  from  being  "members  one  of  another," 
that  holds  us  together.  Still  others  advocate  the  thought 
of  a  common  good  as  the  welding  force;  there  is  a  com- 
mon element  somewhere  in  the  nature  of  men,  a  com- 
mon "good"  conceived  by  each  as  the  coveted  goal  to- 
ward which  all  are  striving,  and  man  has  in  him  enough 
of  divinity  to  impel  him  to  service  and  sacrifice  for  others, 
that  all  together  may  attain  the  goal. 

To  which  of  these  views  shall  we  hold?    Is  it  true  that 

there  is  one  great  integrating  force  in  society  which  is 

so  much  stronger  than  all  other  unifying 

a  compi«.b<    '   f°rces  that  it  can  be  selected  from  among  the 

others  as  the  most  fundamental?    Is  there 

a  keystone  to  the  social  structure  which,  if  withdrawn, 

will  cause  the  whole  to  tumble?    We  shall  probably  be 


12  SOCIAL  PRINCIPLES  OF  EDUCATION 

nearer  the  truth  if  we  say  that  all  the  forces  mentioned, 
and  many  others  besides,  are  fundamental  to  social 
unity.  The  social  process  is  so  complex,  and  life  touches 
life  at  so  many  points,  that  no  single  bond  could  tie 
millions  of  individual  life  processes  up  into  one  great  co- 
herent social  stream;  it  must  rather  be  a  network  of 
forces,  each  exerting  its  influence  upon  the  individuals 
to  whom  this  force  most  appeals. 

For  not  all  individuals  are  equally  influenced  by  social 
forces.    What  may  serve  to  draw  one  into  the  social  proc- 
ess as  a  contributor  to  the  general  welfare 
social  bone?*      mav  leave   another  untouched.     Beyond 
varies  for  doubt  there  are  individuals  whose  hand 

would  be  against  society  were  it  not  for 
the  fear  of  force.  There  are  others  who  co- 
operate chiefly  from  economic  necessity.  Others  are  ap- 
pealed to  by  religion;  others  by  the  feeling  of  like-mind- 
edness;  and  still  others  by  the  ideal  of  a  common  good. 
Not  only  does  this  truth  hold  for  individuals,  but  for 
societies  as  well.  Indeed,  it  is  probable  that  each  of  the 
forces  mentioned  has  been  the  chief  force  in  turn  at  dif- 
ferent stages  of  social  development;  and  all  are  in  some 
degree  operative  in  any  organized  society.  Without  at- 
tempting to  arrange  these  forces  in  a  hierarchy,  it  is  evi- 
dent to  all  who  accept  the  spiritual  as  the  highest  form 
of  evolution  in  man,  that  force  and  economic  necessity 
belong  to  a  lower  stage  of  social  development  than  like- 
mindedness  and  the  ideal  of  a  common  good.  The  social 
bond  is  itself  a  product  of  social  evolution,  and  hence  of 
necessity  keeps  pace  with  the  progress  of  society. 


THE  INDIVIDUAL  AND  SOCIETY  13 


II.    The  Contribution  of  Society  to  the  Individual 

The  individual  and  society  are  but  the  two  aspects  of 
one  great  unitary  fact.  This  fact  is  life;  and  life  is  not  a 
The  life-process  thing>  but  a  process.  The  life-process  may 
the  funda-  be  viewed  from  either  one  of  its  two  aspects, 
mental  fact.  ^  ^^j^  or  the  soc{(ji^  The  millions 

of  individual  life-processes  unite,  intermingle,  and  play 
upon  each  other  to  produce  the  social  process;  the  social 
process  includes,  moulds,  and  gives  significance  to  the  life- 
process  of  the  individual.  While  there  is,  therefore,  but 
the  one  great  central  fact  of  life,  sweeping  on  in  its  end- 
less generations,  these  two  aspects  do  exist,  and  the  life- 
process  can  best  be  described  in  certain  of  its  aspects 
from  the  individual  standpoint,  and  in  others  from  the 
social.  Let  us  now  proceed  to  consider  some  of  the  social 
influences  most  important  in  shaping  the  life  of  the  in- 
dividual. What  are  the  chief  contributions  of  society  to 
the  individual? 

Society  supplies  the  medium  in  which  the  individual 
develops.  The  old  problem  of  the  priority  of  the  hen 

or  the  egg  has  had  for  its  philosophical 
*      descendant  the  question  of  the  primacy  of 
which  the  society  or  the  individual.     But,  fortunately 

develops.  ^or  our  Present  study,  we  do  not  need  to 

solve  this  insoluble  riddle.  For  it  will  be 
granted  that  organized  society,  with  its  specialized  ac- 
tivities, its  multiplicity  of  institutions,  its  traditions  and 
standards,  does  not  exist  prior  to  individual  activity,  but 
is  rather  the  product  of  it.  •  But,  on  the  other  hand,  for 
any  particular  individual,  society  exists  first.  For  the 
individual  at  birth  finds  himself  in  a  society  already  or- 


14  SOCIAL  PRINCIPLES  OF  EDUCATION 

ganized  and  carrying  on  its  multiform  activities.  The 
very  family  of  which  he  is  a  member  is  social  rather  than 
biological  in  its  origin  and  nature.  Social  conventions 
surround  his  birth,  give  him  his  name,  dictate  his  dress, 
determine  how  he  shall  eat,  select  the  language  he  shall 
speak,  and  specify  the  nature  of  his  education.  He  con- 
forms to  social  standards  set  up  before  he  was  born, 
shapes  his  views  in  accordance  with  a  religious  creed  he 
did  not  make,  chooses  among  political  principles  already 
formulated,  and  selects  a  vocation  from  among  many  or- 
ganized lines  of  activity.  He  follows  the  social  customs 
in  wooing  his  mate,  is  married  by  whatever  form  of  cere- 
mony society  dictates,  and  is  finally  buried  in  accord- 
ance with  social  traditions.  In  fact,  he  does  as  other 
people  do  because  that  is  the  natural  way  and  the  best 
way  to  do.  Society  touches  his  life  at  every  point, 
prodding  him  to  activity  here,  restraining  him  there, 
providing  him  with  opportunity,  and  loading  him  with 
responsibility,  rewarding  him,  punishing  him,  and  sup- 
plying him  with  a  whole  system  of  checks  and  balances. 
The  individual  could  no  more  live  his  life  outside  the 
medium  of  society  than  he  could  outside  the  medium  of 
air. 

Society  stimulates  the  individual  to  activity.  The  mo- 
tive power  which  drives  to  activity  and  worthy  achieve- 
Society  acts  (2)  ment  exists  within  the  individual,  but  the 
as  a  stimulus  clutch  is  thrown  on  by  social  forces.  Men 
must  be  paced  if  they  are  to  reach  the  limit 
of  their  powers.  None  would  come  to  their  best,  and 
few  even  to  mediocre,  achievement  were  it  not  for  the 
pressure  of  necessity. 

One  of  the  most  immediate  and  pressing  forms  of  ne- 
cessity is  the  economic,  the  necessity  of  securing  food, 


THE  INDIVIDUAL  AND  SOCIETY  15 

shelter,  and  clothing.  The  great  part  that  this  form  of 
necessity  has  played  in  man's  progress  may  be  seen  from 
The  pressure  the  Pe°ples  wn°  nave  been  left  hopelessly 
of  necessity  behind  in  social  evolution  because  of  the 
required.  absence  of  its  pressure.  The  peoples  of  the 

tropics  are  inferior  to  those  of  the  temperate  zones  prob- 
ably far  less  from  a  difference  in  original  powers  and 
capacities  than  because  nature  has  been  so  generous  in 
food  and  climatic  conditions  in  the  tropics  that  the 
powers  and  capacities  of  the  individual  have  not  been 
demanded  in  the  struggle  for  existence,  and  hence  have 
lain  dormant.  Economic  necessity  does  not,  however, 
go  far  enough  as  an  incentive.  It  serves  to  lift  man 
above  savagery,  but,  unaided  by  other  motives,  would 
leave  him  stranded  near  the  level  of  barbarism. 

It  is  at  this  point  that  social  incentives  begin  to  ex- 
ert their  pressure.  Man  comes  to  discover  that  the  life 
is  more  than  meat  and  the  body  more 
than  raiment.  Working,  striving,  suffering 
shoulder  to  shoulder  with  other  men,  man's 
social  consciousness  has  its  birth.  He  not  only  must 
have  enough  to  eat  and  wear,  and  a  shelter  to  keep  him 
warm,  but  he  must  have  standing  in  the  eyes  of  his 
brother  man.  He  covets  the  approval  of  public  opinion; 
he  is  eager  for  the  honors  and  rewards  which  society 
stands  ready 'to  bestow  upon  him;  he  seeks  to  make  a 
name  for  himself  which  will  endure  in  the  social  memory. 
Or,  again,  he  may  feel  the  call  of  a  great  social  need  and 
achieve  his  own  greatness  through  self-sacrifice  and  ser- 
vice. Man  reaches  his  best  only  through  striving  to  min- 
ister to  his  fellow  man's  greatest  need,  or  through  striv- 
ing to  make  himself  worthy  the  rewards  which  his  fellow 
man  gives  him  in  return  for  his  service.  Separated  from 


16  SOCIAL  PRINCIPLES  OF  EDUCATION 

the  stress  of  social  activities  the  individual  would  never 
"find  himself."  His  powers  would  remain  dormant 
within  him  from  lack  of  a  motive  to  use  them.  The 
richer  and  more  diversified,  therefore,  the  social  ac- 
tivities and  relationships  which  the  individual  finds 
pressing  upon  him,  the  greater  is  the  stimulation  of 
his  own  powers,  and  hence  the  fuller  their  develop- 
ment. 

Examples  of  the  power  of  these  social  incentives  are 
seen  in  men's  thirst  for  power,  which  is  valued,  after  all, 
chiefly  because  it  focuses  public  attention 
an(^  esteem  on  its  possessor.  Men  will  fight, 
sacrifice,  die,  for  power.  This  is  not  for  the 
love  of  power  in  itself,  but  because  society  has  stamped 
a  high  value  on  power  through  giving  honor  and  rewards 
to  those  who  achieve  it.  Men,  therefore,  take  society's 
appraisement  of  the  worth  of  power,  and,  under  the 
stimulus  of  this  social  incentive,  achieve  results  both  for 
themselves  and  society  which  would  have  been  impossible 
without  the  help  of  such  a  social  stimulus. 

The  individual  is  also  constantly  under  the  pressure  of 
social  necessity  as  regards  his  standard  of  living.    The 

standards  set  up  by  those  of  the  social  plane 
Stir  of  social  i  •  i  i>  ,  •  11  i  •  i 

prestige.  upon  which  one  lives  are  practically  bind- 

ing upon  him.  To  maintain  his  position 
and  prestige  he  must  come  up  to  the  required  level 
no  matter  what  the  cost.  For  this  reason  standards 
of  living,  except  for  those  of  the  lowest  social  planes, 
often  have  very  little  relation  to  the  actual  require- 
ments of  comfort  and  well-being.  People  come  to  care 
far  less  whether  their  clothes  are  comfortable,  their 
houses  homelike  and  convenient,  and  their  food  nutri- 
tious and  healthful,  than  whether  in  these  things  they 


THE  INDIVIDUAL  AND   SOCIETY  17 

are  maintaining  as  high  a  standard  as  other  people  of 
the  same  social  plane.  So  strong  is  the  social  stimulus  in 
this  direction  that  an  artificial  emulation  is  set  up  which 
often  provokes  overstrain  and  financial  worry,  and  al- 
ways results  in  economic  waste. 

After  the  most  immediate  bodily  wants  have  been  sup- 
plied, it  is,  therefore,  the  activities  and  achievements  of 
Social  emuia-  others  that  constitute  our  strongest  in- 
tion  leads  to  centive  to  effort.  The  individual  feels  that 

ort*  he  must  catch  step  with  his  generation. 

The  mere  example  of  progress  and  success  is  a  constant 
spur  to  personal  endeavor.  We  strive  to  increase  our 
wealth  not  more  because  we  need  the  money  than  be- 
cause we  note  that  our  neighbor's  fortune  is  growing.  We 
go  to  school  not  alone  because  we  aspire  to  an  education, 
but  also  because  we  see  others  securing  an  education,  and 
we  feel  that  we  must  not  be  left  behind.  New  books  are 
written,  new  scientific  discoveries  made,  and  new  inven- 
tions worked  out  not  solely  because  of  the  creative  im- 
pulse stirring  within  us,  but  partly  because  other  scholars 
and  inventors  are  doing  these  things,  and  we  must  keep 
up.  Our  churches  are  built  and  our  philanthropies  sup- 
ported not  wholly  from  love  of  our  brother  man,  but 
partly  because  it  is  in  the  spirit  of  the  age  to  do  these 
things,  and  individuals,  therefore,  respond  with  their 
help.  In  these  and  many  other  activities  the  individual 
is  caught  in  the  onward  sweep  of  social  progress,  and  he 
has  no  choice  but  to  exert  his  powers  to  the  utmost  if  he 
would  not  be  left  hopelessly  behind  in  the  race.  It  is  only 
under  the  pressure  of  such  social  necessity  that  man 
reaches  the  limit  of  his  powers. 

The  individual  owes  a  great  debt  to  society  for  pro- 
viding him  with  a  set  of  organized  activities.  Without 


18  SOCIAL  PRINCIPLES  OF  EDUCATION 

this  help  he  would  be  like  primitive  man,  who,  perforce, 

felt  his  way  blunderingly,  groping  for  the  best  ways  to 

expend  his  energies  so  as  to  secure  from 

Society  pro-  _ 

vides  (3)  a  set  them  the  greatest  returns.  But  no  one 
of  organized  na(j  blazed  the  way;  activities  were  as  yet 

activities.  .  j          1  uv 

unorganized,  and  early  man  was  obliged 
to  learn  in  the  hard  school  of  experience  how  and  what 
to  do  or  not  do.  He  was  an  explorer  in  a  strange  land, 
without  chart  or  compass.  No  wonder  he  often  made 
mistakes  and  lost  his  way. 

The  individual  who,  at  birth,  enters  a  well-organized 
society,  with  its  various  modes  of  activity  thoroughly 
The  advantage  formulated,  has  an  incalculable  advantage 
of  the  Individ-  over  his  brother  man  of  an  earlier  social 

3  to-  ay.      era.   £of  a  jarge  parj.  o£  tne  experimenting 

has  been  done.  The  crudest  of  our  blunders  and  the 
most  costly  of  our  mistakes  have  been  made;  they  have 
taught  their  lesson,  and  will  not  again  be  repeated.  The 
various  fields  of  human  activity  have  been  thoroughly 
explored  and  charted,  and  signs  of  "danger"  or  "clear 
track"  set  up  here  and  there.  We  have  given  a  fair  trial 
to  feudalism  and  slavery,  and  have  discarded  them  as 
failures;  we  have  given  up  burning  witches  and  those  who 
do  not  agree  with  us  in  theology;  justice  is  no  longer 
determined  through  a  trial  of  the  accused  by  "ordeal"; 
and  we  are  even  losing  our  faith  in  war  as  a  method  of 
settling  disputes. 

Primitive  man,  lacking  organized  activities,  was  obliged 
to  supply  all  his  needs  through  his  own  industries;  but 
Social  origin  ^e  f°und  that  it  did  not  work  well,  and  so- 
of  organized  ciety  has  organized  a  complex  system  of 
ctmties.  industries  based  on  the  principle  of  divi- 
sion of  labor;  and  the  various  well-defined  vocations  are 


THE  INDIVIDUAL  AND  SOCIETY  19 

the  result.  Bartering  for  the  exchange  of  commodities 
was  found  to  be  an  unsatisfactory  method,  hence  money 
was  invented  and  great  commercial  systems  built  up. 
After  much  experimentation  it  was  found  that  the 
monogamous  family  is  the  type  of  relationship  between 
the  sexes  best  suited  to  individual  and  social  develop- 
ment. Man's  religious  impulse  failed  to  find  satisfactory 
expression  and  development  except  in  connection  with 
other  lives  moved  by  similar  impulses;  and  the  institu- 
tion which  we  call  the  church  came  into  existence.  In  a 
similar  way  we  came  by  the  state,  the  school,  and  all  the 
other  social  institutions  which  the  individual  finds  ready 
at  hand  and  inviting  his  participation. 

It  is  true  that  all  organized  modes  of  activity  are  con- 
stantly changing  in  progressive  societies;  yet,  such  as 
The  individual  they  are  at  any  given  time,  they  represent 
adopts  social  the  aggregate  wisdom  of  society  as  to  the 
best  and  most  fruitful  way  for  the  indi- 
vidual to  set  about  his  life  activities  in  these  various 
lines.  Equipped  with  the  instinct  of  imitation,  and  pos- 
sessing the  power  to  receive  and  act  upon  social  sugges- 
tion, the  individual  may  reap  the  advantage  of  all  the 
experience  of  his  race  without  even  taking  the  trouble  to 
learn  it  through  history  or  tradition.  All  he  needs  to  do 
is  to  take  up  his  life  activities  as  he  finds  them  ready  for 
him  in  the  greater  social  process  of  which  his  life  forms 
a  part.  It  is  in  this  way  that  social  progress  is  made  pos- 
sible and  that  man  is  able  to  climb  toward  a  goal  that 
is  constantly  mounting  upward.  Each  generation  can 
use  the  achievements  of  all  former  generations  as  step- 
ping stones;  each  individual  is  endowed  with  all  the  best 
methods  man  has  discovered  for  using  his  energies  and 
his  opportunities. 


20  SOCIAL  PRINCIPLES  OF  EDUCATION 

Society  supplies  the  individual  with  criteria  of  con- 
duct. The  individual  is  by  nature  neither  moral  nor 
Society  (4)  immoral;  he  is  simply  unmoral.  It  is  only 
moulds  in  the  midst  of  social  activities  that  oppor- 

tunities for  decision  and  choice  arise  which 
enable  the  individual  to  develop  into  a  moral  being.  The 
first  acts  of  the  child  are  wholly  individualistic,  having 
their  origin  and  their  end  both  in  the  self.  Though  such 
acts  are  stimulated  by  the  social  environment,  the  social 
motive  plays  no  part  in  their  performance.  But,  little 
by  little,  through  social  activities  there  comes  about  a 
kind  of  "natural  selection"  among  the  impulses  and 
tendencies  of  the  individual.  Certain  acts  are  "fit"  so- 
cially, and  hence  society  rewards  them  with  its  approval, 
and  they  become  fixed  as  habits  in  the  individual.  Other 
acts  do  not  coincide  with  social  standards  and  traditions, 
and  hence  are  frowned  upon  by  society;  these  the  indi- 
vidual has  a  tendency  to  drop  out,  and  they  do  not  come 
to  function  as  habit.  The  persistence  of  some  acts  as  a 
part  of  a  system  of  conduct,  and  the  failure  of  others  to 
survive,  are  thus  largely  determined  by  their  adaptability 
to  fit  into  the  social  purpose.  By  this  means  social  life 
supplies  the  individual  with  a  whole  set  of  checks  and 
balances  by  which  to  judge  his  impulses  and  achieve- 
ments. In  a  complex  society  there  is  no  limit  to  the 
criteria  for  judgment  and  discrimination  supplied  the 
individual  by  social  attitudes  and  conditions. 

Nor  does  this  mean  that  the  individual  is  to  be  merely 
a  puppet  in  the  hands  of  society,  taking  his  cue  for  con- 
The  individual  duct  wholly  from  social  standards  and  de- 
eiementin  mands,  and  possessing  no  independence  of 
judgment  and  initiative  on  his  own  account. 
On  the  contrary,  the  first  condition  for  the  development 


THE  INDIVIDUAL  AND  SOCIETY  21 

of  moral  power  is  freedom  for  reflective  thought  and  per- 
sonal initiative  on  the  part  of  the  individual.  He  must 
be  free  to  criticise  social  standards,  and  to  propose  and 
seek  to  put  into  practice  for  himself  and  others  better 
ones.  But  even  so,  this  can  best  be  accomplished  by 
building  on  the  moral  achievements  already  accomplished 
by  society.  The  moral  order  of  all  progressive  societies 
is  far  above  that  of  the  individual  were  he  left  to  develop 
according  to  the  bent  of  his  own  individualistic  tenden- 
cies without  the  influence  of  the  social  moral  order  bear- 
ing upon  him.  In  all  the  years  of  their  striving,  men  have 
learned  some  moral  lessons  so  thoroughly  that  they  have 
become  a  part  of  the  social  fibre.  They  have  come  to 
see,  however  dimly,  that  the  ideal  of  a  common  good  is 
fundamental  both  to  individual  development  and  to  so- 
cial progress.  They  have  learned  to  check  certain  ten- 
dencies and  to  encourage  others.  They  have  put  the 
social  taboo  upon  some  practices  and  the  stamp  of  social 
approval  upon  others.  Out  of  the  collective  lessons  of 
social  experience  have  come  some  moral  sanctions  that 
are  no  longer  open  to  question.  These  society  puts  at 
the  disposal  of  the  inolividual.  These  the  individual, 
through  imitation,  makes  the  basis  of  his  personal  moral 
programme.  In  this  way  he  is  saved  the  necessity  of 
discovering  for  himself  what  society  has  been  ages  in 
finding  out,  and  is  thus  able  in  the  moral  order,  as  in  the 
intellectual  or  the  industrial  order,  to  begin  where  the 
race  has  left  off. 

Social  and  A  distinction  may,  therefore,  be  made 

individual  between  social  morality  and  individual  mo- 
morality,  rality.  In  so  far  as  the  individual  accepts 
uncritically,  through  imitation  and  suggestion,  the  moral 
standards  and  practices  of  society,  they  are  not  for  him 


22  SOCIAL  PRINCIPLES  OF  EDUCATION 

moral  at  all,  since  they  involve  no  choice  on  his  part. 
Just  as  soon,  however,  as  he  subjects  the  moral  stand- 
ards of  society  to  critical  examination,  and  accepts  or 
rejects  these  standards  with  reference  to  his  own  con- 
duct, he  is  developing  a  personal  morality.  When  the 
individual  conceives  the  necessity  for  modifying  the 
moral  standards  of  society,  and  adopts  new  standards 
for  himself  and  secures  their  adoption  by  society,  he  is 
instituting  moral  reform,  which  is  but  another  name  for 
social  reform.  If  the  new  moral  standards  adopted  are 
better  than  the  old  ones  which  they  displaced,  the  result 
has  been  progress  both  for  the  individual  and  society. 
Both  individual  moral  power  and  social  morality  are 
achieved  by  a  reconstruction  of  the  existent  moral  order 
of  society  through  reflective  thought  and  judgment  of 
individuals.  That  is  to  say,  progressive  morality  is  the 
result  of  social  evolution,  and  not  of  creative  fiat.  The 
moral  principle  exists  in  the  nature  of  the  individual,  but 
it  is  brought  to  consciousness  and  development  only 
through  social  participation. 

///.    The  Contribution  of  the  Individual  to  Society 

But  while  society  makes  so  great  a  contribution  to  the 
individual,  this  does  not  mean  that  society  is  always  the 
The  individual  contributor  and  the  individual  always  the 
must  pay  his  recipient.  In  the  first  place,  this  would  be 
iety*  fundamentally  impossible.  For  society,  in 
its  constituent  elements,  consists  only  of  individuals, 
and  hence  has  nothing  to  give  which  does  not  originate 
in  the  individual.  The  law  of  compensatory  action  works 
as  relentlessly  in  the  social  realm  as  in  the  mechanical. 
It  is  not  "earth"  alone  that  "gets  its  price  for  what 


THE  INDIVIDUAL  AND  SOCIETY  23 

earth  gives  us."    Society,  in  the  end,  receives  its  full  re- 
turn for  what  it  expends  on  the  individual.    This  must  of 
necessity  be  the  case,  else  society  would  soon  be  a  bank- 
rupt in  culture,  and  civilization  would  wane  and  decay. 
Further,  the  individual  who  seeks  his  own  fullest  de- 
velopment as  a  personality  has  no  choice  but  to  repay 
his  debt  to  society;  for  the  interests  and 

Individual  ...          ,,       ......      ,          ,          .. 

development  activities  of  the  individual  and  society  are 
demands  so  mdissolubly  linked  together  that  the  in- 

social  return,  r  it  *.i_      v*       i.'  u 

dividual  can  successfully  use  the  gifts  which 

society  so  freely  bestows  upon  him  only  as  he  em- 
ploys them  as  a  contributor  to  social  welfare.  He  can 
fully  realize  upon  his  own  powers  and  capacities  only 
as  a  participant  in  the  social  activities  of  his  day.  He 
can  attain  to  the  highest  good  as  an  individual  only 
as  he  seeks  the  highest  good  of  all.  He  reaches  his  own 
largest  success  and  richest  personal  development  only 
through  service  to  others. 

Thus,  through  the  working  of  an  inevitable  law,  the 
individual,  in  the  very  process  of  his  own  self-realization, 
Society  receives  must  fuU>  liquidate  ^  his  obligation  to  so- 
interest  on  its  ciety.  More  than  this,  society  receives,  on 
investment.  ^  W^Q^  g()(Mj  mterest  on  its  investment; 

for  it  is  out  of  this  interest,  compounded  through  the 
generations,  that  social  progress  is  made  possible.  Each 
generation,  before  it  passes  from  the  stage  of  action,  adds 
its  modicum  to  the  sum  total  of  human  attainment,  leav- 
ing society  so  much  the  richer  for  its  contribution.  Fail- 
ing in  this,  the  individuals  have  not  only  failed  to  repay 
their  debt  to  society,  but  have  also  of  necessity  failed  in 
self-realization. 

We  will  now  note  a  few  of  the  different  phases  of  the 
individual's  contribution  to  society. 


24  SOCIAL  PRINCIPLES  OF  EDUCATION 

The  nature  of  the  individual  makes  society  possible. 
Society  is  more  than  an  aggregate  of  some  millions  or 
_  .  J_.  billions  of  individuals  scattered,  so  many 

Society  is  (i)  * 

made  possible     to  the  square  mile,  over  the  surface  of 

fadi"  the  eartn-  It:  is>  in  addition  to  this  mere 
physical  existence,  an  interrelated  and  co- 
operative system  of  activities;  it  is  a  unity  of  spirit  and 
purpose;  it  is  a  community  of  effort  and  achievement. 
Each  of  the  individuals  constituting  society  has  his  own 
separate  and  distinctive  personality,  standing  apart  on 
the  spiritual  side  from  all  other  personalities  and  known 
to  them  only  indirectly  by  means  of  physical  forms  of 
expression.  Yet,  in  spite  of  this  inevitable  aloofness, 
there  exists  that  in  the  nature  of  man  which  inevi- 
tably demands  touch  with  fellow  man.  The  individual 
cannot  live  as  an  individual  alone;  he  must  also  be  a 
socius. 

Whatever,  therefore,  may  be  the  ultimate  nature  of 
the  bond  which  holds  men  together  in  societies,  we  must 
concede  that  this  bond  inheres  in  the  very 
na-ture  of  the  individual;  it  has  its  roots 
in  the  deepest  impulses  and  tendencies  of 
man;  it  is  a  subjective  demand  of  human  nature,  and 
not  an  invention  of  society  thrust  on  from  without. 

The  same  truth  holds  with  reference  to  social  achieve- 
ment. All  that  has  become  or  will  become  explicit  in 
the  life  of  society  must  first  be  implicit  in  the  nature  of 
man.  All  that  becomes  actualized  through  social  en- 
deavor must  first  be  idealized  in  the  minds  of  individuals. 
The  social  institutions,  the  vocations  and  avocations, 
the  moral  standards  and  ethical  ideals,  all  existed  in  the 
individual  before  they  existed  in  society,  just  as  the  oak 
exists  in  the  acorn  before  it  exists  in  the  forest. 


THE  INDIVIDUAL  AND   SOCIETY  25 

Society  is  in  a  very  vital  sense  only  "the  individual 

writ  large."    The  social  process  is  not  only  made  up  of 

the  confluent  life-processes  of  individuals, 

Society  defined    , 

by  the  char-       but  the  nature  of  these  determines  the  type 


an(*  cnaracter  °f  the  social  process.  The 
social  level  is  to  be  found  by  striking  the 
average  of  all  the  individuals  constituting  society.  The 
social  stream  cannot  rise  higher  than  its  source. 

The  individual  is  the  bearer  of  social  culture.  During 
the  centuries  of  its  striving,  the  race  has  accumulated  an 
The  individual  immense  store  of  culture,  and  this  has  be- 
(2)  transmits  come  the  common  possession  of  society. 
social  culture.  Languages  have  grown  up  and  literatures 
of  surpassing  richness  developed.  Scientific  discoveries 
and  inventions  have  given  men  a  large  degree  of  control 
over  the  forces  which  come  in  contact  with  their  lives. 
Institutions  have  arisen  and  become  the  repositories  of 
collective  human  experience.  Vocations  have  been  de- 
veloped and  specialized  until  they  possess  a  marvellous 
degree  of  effectiveness  and  skill.  Religion  has  formu- 
lated the  best  in  man's  concept  of  God  and  our  relation 
to  Him.  These  are  the  things  that  constitute  the  wealth 
of  society  on  the  spiritual  side.  They  are  the  contribu- 
tion of  the  past  to  the  present,  the  social  heritage  of  the 
ages.  In  them  society  cherishes  the  results  of  the  toil, 
the  sacrifice,  and  the  achievement  of  the  generations. 

But  these  social  riches  can  belong  to  but  one  genera- 

tion at  a  time.    Each  generation  must  receive  them  anew 

from  the  generation  that  precedes  it;    or, 

Culture  must  .  ,  . 

be  created         rather,  each  generation  must  achieve  the 
anew  in  each      SOcial  heritage  for  itself.    The  spiritual  pos- 

generation.  .  °  ,  , 

sessions  of  the  race  must  be  created  anew  in 
the  lives  of  each  successive  generation,  else  the  heritage 


26  SOCIAL  PRINCIPLES  OF  EDUCATION 

itself  is  lost;  for  this  spiritual  culture  is  not  something 
that  can  be  stored  away  in  vaults  and  saved  for  a  later 
time;  it  cannot  be  deposited  in  books  or  incorporated 
in  machines  or  edifices  and  be  drawn  upon  a  century  or 
two  hence.  Being  spiritual,  racial  culture  lives  only  as 
it  is  constantly  rebuilt  into  the  lives  of  men.  A  few  cen- 
turies of  dark  ages  and  incalculable  stores  of  human 
treasure  are  irreparably  lost. 

The  vital  part  played  by  the  individual  in  the  trans- 
ference of  culture  from  generation  to  generation  is  easily 
seen  in  a  simple  illustration.    Suppose  all 

Culture  inheres  .     ,.    .         ,       .        .  . 

in  life,  not  in      the  individuals  of  a  given  generation  should 

objects  or  refuse  to  be  the  bearers  of  the  race's  cult- 
symbols.  . 

ure.     Let  them  close  their  minds  to  all 

learning  and  education;  let  them  spurn  all  our  literature, 
art,  and  science;  let  them  refuse  all  our  institutions  and 
decline  to  participate  in  them  as  members;  let  them  turn 
from  all  our  organized  vocations  and  reject  all  our  re- 
ligions and  systems  of  ethics.  Where,  then,  would  be  all 
our  boasted  culture?  What  would  become  of  all  our  rich 
social  heritage?  We  might  still  for  a  time  have  our  libra- 
ries full  of  books,  but  none  could  read  them,  and  their 
contents  would  be  lost;  we  might  for  a  time  keep  some 
of  our  marvellous  machines  and  our  scientific  formulae, 
but  none  could  use  or  understand  them,  and  they  would 
disappear;  our  stately  buildings,  our  railways  and  ships 
would  remain  for  a  time,  but  they  would  soon  crumble 
away;  our  art  and  our  music  would  fail  to  be  understood, 
and  would  be  lost  and  forgotten.  All  these  things  would 
possess  no  meaning  for  benighted  humanity,  and  hence 
could  have  no  value.  They  would,  therefore,  soon  pass 
into  tradition,  and  from  tradition  into  oblivion.  Society 
would  fall  apart,  and  man  be  reduced  to  a  condition  of 


THE  INDIVIDUAL  AND  SOCIETY  27 

savagery.  Humanity  would  have  to  start  again  at  the 
very  foot  of  the  ladder  of  progress  and  once  more  climb 
with  infinite  toil  and  sacrifice  toward  the  goal.  So  great 
is  the  part  the  individual  must  play  in  the  progress  of 
society. 

Each  generation  has,  therefore,  a  double  duty  before 
it.    First,  it  must  take  the  heritage  of  culture  bequeathed 

The  twofold  to  ^  ky  ^e  race  anc^  ma^e  it  secure  by  in- 
duty  of  each  corporating  it  into  their  own  lives,  not  fail- 
ing to  add  something  to  it  that  more  may 
be  passed  on  than  was  received.  Second,  each  genera- 
tion must  effect  a  safe  transfer  of  its  culture  to  its  suc- 
cessors; that  is,  must  educate  its  children.  Having  failed 
in  either  of  these  things,  it  is  recreant  to  its  trust. 
Having  achieved  them  both,  it  has  made  its  contribu- 
tion to  human  progress,  and  from  the  standpoint  of 
society  has  performed  its  full  duty.  Its  individuals 
are  now  ready,  in  the  economy  of  nature,  to  pass  on 
from  the  stage  of  action  that  room  may  be  left  for 
the  new-comers  who  are  waiting  their  turn.  The  field 
must  be  cleared  for  other  workers  who  are  impatient 
to  take  up  their  task.  Death  is  as  necessary  to  prog- 
ress as  life. 

Individual  initiative  makes  social  progress  possible. 

Society  is  conservative,  the  individual  alone  is  progres- 

......    .     sive.    Society  falls  into  the  rut  of  custom 

The  individual  ,.  . 

(3)  makes  and  tradition  and  tends  to  stagnation;  the 
progress  pos-  individual  possesses  initiative  and  original- 
ity which  impel  to  experiment  and  new 
lines  of  activity.  The  societies  in  which  individual 
initiative  has  been  suppressed  or  undeveloped  have 
always  been  societies  of  mediocre  or  inferior  achieve- 
ment. 


28  SOCIAL  PRINCIPLES  OF  EDUCATION 

Industrial  society,  fettered  by  age-long  adherence  to 
wasteful  and  inefficient  methods  of  production,  is  eman- 
cipated from  economic  bondage  and  given 

Society  con-  . 

servative;  the     wealth  and  leisure  by  the  inventive  genius 
individual  pro-     of  a  Stevenson,  a  Watt,  or  an  Edison.    A 

gressive.  _      .          _.      .        ,  .          .  . 

Luther  Burbank  teaches  his  generation, 
long  accustomed  to  routine  methods  of  plant  culture, 
how  to  double  the  efficiency  of  the  soil.  Bessemer,  study- 
ing the  processes  of  smelting  ore,  gives  us  the  improved 
grade  of  steel  which  triples  and  quadruples  the  efficiency 
of  our  machines  and  revolutionizes  our  industries.  And  so 
on  through  an  almost  endless  list  of  the  contributions 
of  scientists  and  inventors  and  organizers  of  industrial 
activities,  who  have  multiplied  the  material  resources  of 
society  almost  beyond  comprehension  through  their  own 
initiative  and  originality. 

And  the  illustrations  might  be  carried  over  into  every 
field  or  phase  of  social  activity.    Individuals  have  made 

discoveries  in  science  and  medicine  which 
^leader.000  are  savmg  the  u'ves  of  millions  each  year, 

who  otherwise  would  die  an  unnecessary  and 
premature  death.  Moral  and  religious  leaders  are  point- 
ing us  to  a  better  conception  of  the  meaning  of  life  and 
destiny.  Wise  teachers  are  showing  us  how  to  save 
the  great  waste  in  time  and  effort  in  securing  our  ed- 
ucation. Prophets  of  commerical  and  political  ethics 
are  arousing  the  social  conscience  against  public  or 
private  graft.  Leaders  everywhere,  standing  out  above 
the  common  level  of  society,  are  showing  us  the  way 
to  higher  social  achievement  or  urging  us  to  quicken 
our  pace. 

Nor  are  we  to  think  that  only  the  individuals  whose 
names  are  known  to  fame  possess  initiative  and  origi- 


THE  INDIVIDUAL  AND   SOCIETY  29 

nality.  Every  man  who  sees  a  better  way  of  doing  a 
thing,  however  insignificant  and  humble  the  thing  may 

Originality  not      ^e>  *S  *n   ^S   measure   a   Contributor  to  SO- 

an  attribute  of  cial  progress  and  a  benefactor  of  his  race. 
'ne*  Every  man  who  is  not  a  mere  follower, 
but,  while  he  follows,  occasionally  leads  in  his  own 
sphere  of  activity,  is  an  inventor  and  leaves  his  im- 
press upon  society. 

Society  is,  therefore,  rich  finally  in  its  individual  mem- 
bers and  the  ideas  which  they  possess.  The  world  has 
Possibilities  of  ^ar  greater  material  resources  and  natural 
achievement  powers  than  we  have  yet  dreamed  of.  Each 
ahead'  new  discovery  and  invention  only  serves  to 

give  us  an  inkling  of  what  is  yet  to  be  if  we  but  continue 
to  invent  and  discover.  The  social  world  has  larger  pos- 
sibilities of  mutual  helpfulness  and  service  for  the  com- 
mon good  than  we  have  yet  put  into  practice.  Human 
powers  and  capacities  possess  far  greater  resources  than 
we  have  yet  succeeded  in  developing  from  them.  Man's 
concept  of  God  is  susceptible  of  incalculable  enrichment. 
What  we  need  is  individuals  of  originality  and  power  to 
stir  up  their  generation  to  thought  and  action.  What 
we  need  is  all  to  be  men  of  thought  and  power,  fully  de- 
veloped personalities,  finding  our  own  highest  good  in 
contributing  our  part  to  the  good  of  all. 

Briefly  summing  up  our  discussion,  we  have  seen  that 
the  individual  and  society  are  indissolubly  linked  to- 
gether as  the  two  factors  in  one  unitary 

Summary.  .  . 

process.  The  interests,  the  success,  the  de- 
fects of  the  one  are  the  interests,  success,  and  defects  of 
the  other.  But,  while  this  is  the  case,  yet  each  has  its 
own  particular  function  to  perform  in  the  common 
process. 


30  SOCIAL  PRINCIPLES  OF  EDUCATION 

Society  must  give  the  individual  his  chance;  his  op- 
portunities are  to  be  made  the  most  favorable  possible; 
the  social  matrix  must  be  a  soil  favorable 
society!""18  °f  to  individual  growth  and  development. 
The  social  atmosphere  must  be  free  from 
impurities,  and  must  contain  the  elements  that  will  stim- 
ulate to  individual  effort  and  achievement.  The  social 
organization  must  rest  on  the  ideal  of  the  common  good, 
and  equal  opportunity.  The  social  standards  must  re- 
quire and  reward  moral  conduct,  while  still  leaving  room 
for  individual  judgment  and  independence.  Above  all, 
society  must  not  fail  in  efficiently  transmitting  its  social 
heritage  to  the  individual,  but  efficiently  perform  the 
greatest  of  all  its  functions,  that  of  educating  Us  youth. 
For  failure  at  this  point  means  inefficiency  for  the  indi- 
vidual, and  stagnation  and  decay  for  society. 

On  the  other  hand,  the  individual  man  has  a  responsi- 
bility no  less  heavy.  He  is  the  legatee  of  a  thousand  gen- 
erations who  have  toiled  and  sacrificed  to 
^individual!  accumulate  the  splendid  heritage  placed  in 
his  hands.  He  owes  a  great  debt  to  society 
which  he  can  repay  only  as  he  first  pays  the  debt  he  owes 
to  himself — that  of  making  the  most  of  his  own  powers 
and  capacities.  And  this  self-development  is  to  be 
accomplished  not  selfishly  for  himself  alone,  but  also  for 
society  in  return  for  its  gift  to  him.  He  must  realize  the 
social  aim,  through  attaining  to  the  highest  possible  de- 
gree of  self-realization.  He  must  respond  to  society's 
effort  to  make  him  the  bearer  of  the  race's  achievements 
— he  must  respond  to  the  attempt  to  educate  him. 


THE  INDIVIDUAL  AND  SOCIETY  31 


REFERENCES 

Aristotle,  Ethics  and  Politics;  Baldwin,  Social  and  Ethical 
Interpretations,  ch.  IX;  Bosanquet,  Philosophical  Theory  of  the 
State,  ch.  VIII;  Cooley,  Human  Nature  and  the  Social  Order; 
Dewey  and  Tufts,  Ethics;  Giddings,  Principles  of  Sociology, 
Book  II;  Home,  Philosophy  of  Education,  chs.  IV,  V;  Kidd, 
Social  Evolution,  ch.  II;  MacVannell,  Philosophy  of  Education, 
ch.  VI;  Sumner,  Folkways,  ch.  V;  Ward,  Pure  Sociology,  ch. 
XII;  Wells,  Mankind  in  the  Making,  ch.  VII. 


CHAPTER  III 
AIM  IN  EDUCATION:    ITS  ORIGIN  AND  FUNCTION 

We  saw  in  the  last  chapter  something  of  the  nature 
and  relations  of  the  individual  and  society,  the  two  ulti- 
The  questions  mate  factors  concerned  in  the  educational 
involved  process.  It  will  be  our  next  problem  to 

study  the  part  played  by  aim  in  education; 
for  the  only  basis  from  which  any  process  can  be  judged 
as  to  its  effectiveness  is  whether  it  is  fulfilling  its  aim. 
What,  then,  is  the  nature  of  aim?  Where  does  the  educa- 
tional aim  originate?  What  is  its  function?  What  is  the 
aim  of  education?  How  shall  education  successfully  effect 
the  articulation  of  the  individual  with  society?  These 
are  some  of  the  questions  that  enter  into  our  problem. 

/.    The  General  Nature  of  Aim 

Ours  is  a  world  of  change.    Nothing  absolutely  is,  but 

all  is  forever  becoming.    All  tilings  are  passing  over  from 

what  was,  through  the  medium  of  what  is 

universal!  to  wnat  ^^  ^6.     ^ne  W^°  Pauses  to  con- 

template  the  endless  change  going  on  about 
him,  the  countless  generations  of  life  which  ebb  and  flow, 
the  rise  and  fall  of  nations,  the  ceaseless  transformations 
of  energy  into  its  various  forms,  the  growth  and  decay 
of  worlds,  is  ready  to  agree  with  Heraclitus  that  all  is 
change.  Yet,  change  is  not  all;  for  change  is  blind,  and 
may  as  readily  lead  backward  as  forward.  And  the  world 
moves  forward. 

32 


AIM  IN  EDUCATION  33 

Change  offers  the  sole  opportunity  for  progress, 
whether  in  molecules,  men,  or  worlds;  for  nothing  static 
Progress  progresses.  But  change  alone  is  not  prog- 

depends  on  ress.  Only  when  change  is  directed  by 
some  teleological  principle  moving  toward 
a  higher  aim  does  it  become  progress.  Change  which  has 
become  progress  we  call  evolution,  which  is  but  movement 
upward  directed  by  an  organizing  or  teleological  prin- 
ciple. 

Our  problem  does  not  call  for  a  discussion  of  the 
nature  of  this  teleological  principle.  Call  it  God,  or 
Nature  of  Law,  or  Natural  Selection,  or  what  you 
change  in  dif-  will;  it  is  at  work  in  the  world,  making  it 
ferent  realms,  intelligible  by  binding  all  together  in  one 
organic  unity,  whose  watchword  is  progress.  This  or- 
ganizing principle  is  all  inclusive  in  its  grasp.  Yet  it 
manifests  itself  differently  in  different  spheres  of  being. 
In  the  realms  of  mechanism,  chemism,  and  organism  it 
acts  as  a  kind  of  vis  a  tergo  impelling  resistlessly  onward; 
or  it  is  at  best  an  inherent  blind  impulse  which  some- 
how moves  in  the  right  direction,  but  always  without 
conscious  foresight  on  the  part  of  the  thing  moved.  The 
force  of  gravitation,  chemical  affinities,  the  metabolic 
processes  of  organic  life,  all  work  in  accordance  with  law, 
but  without  knowledge  of  it. 

In  man  the  directive  principle  has  risen  to  the  level 
of  consciousness.  Man  acts  not  only  in  accordance  with 
Man  con-  ^aw»  but  m  ^  knowledge  of  it.  Here  the 
sciousiy  directs  impulse  is  no  longer  blind,  but  is  directed 
by  foresight  toward  the  accomplishment  of 
a  conscious  end.  Evolution  has  become  intelligent;  the 
teleological  principle  works  from  within  instead  of  from 
without.  It  is  only  man  that  can  formulate  an  aim  and 


34  SOCIAL  PRINCIPLES  OF  EDUCATION 

select  the  means  for  its  realization.  Nor  is  this  possible 
in  equal  degree  to  all  men.  Primitive  men  have  very 
little  of  such  power.  They  still  stand  close  to  the  realm 
whose  course  is  moulded  by  circumstances.  The  direc- 
tive principle  has  not  risen  in  them  to  full  consciousness; 
hence  they  lack  prevision  of  end,  and  strive  blindly, 
dependent  upon  a  teleology  operating  upon  them  from 
without. 

The  power  to  apprehend  an  aim  which  shall  result  in 
progress  is  a  true  measure  of  the  stage  reached  in  evolu- 
tion.   In  Socrates  the  struggle  to  conceive 

foMin  aim?5  an  end  ^or  existence  was  waged  in  tragic 
earnestness,  but  without  more  than  a  glim- 
mer of  the  inner  light.  He  battled  valiantly  for  a  vision 
of  the  truth,  but  finally  drank  his  cup  of  hemlock  in  semi- 
darkness.  Plato  climbed  a  step  higher.  With  his  clearer 
conceptions  of  the  ends  of  being  and  man's  place  in  the 
world,  he  emerged  from  the  semi-darkness  into  a  clearer 
light.  But  it  remained  for  Aristotle  to  conceive,  more 
clearly  than  had  yet  been  done  by  man,  the  true  aims 
of  life  and  the  means  for  their  attainment.  How  far 
modern  man  has  advanced  beyond  the  stage  occupied 
by  Plato  and  Aristotle  is  to  be  measured  by  his  ability 
to  conceive  a  better  aim  than  they  and  to  select  better 
means  for  its  attainment. 

How  far  has  modern  man  advanced?  From  Aristotle 
to  Darwin  and  Spencer  is  a  long  step  upward.  Yet,  with 
all  man's  progress,  he  has  in  large  measure 
belied  hi5  infinite  capacities  and  proved 
recreant  to  his  high  origin  and  destiny.  For 
much  of  the  change  which  is  going  on  within  man  and 
around  him  is  yet  mere  change  and  not  progress.  Man 
yet  conceives  his  end  but  dimly.  The  passing  years, 


AIM  IN  EDUCATION  35 

the  changes  from  youth  to  age,  from  impotence  to  power, 
from  poverty  to  wealth,  from  ignorance  to  knowledge, 
too  often  fail  to  advance  him  toward  a  higher  goal.  Life 
is  by  too  many  measured  in  terms  of  its  length  instead 
of  in  terms  of  breadth  and  depth,  and  in  terms  of  the 
amount  of  material  substance  it  has  amassed,  gold  and 
houses  and  lands,  instead  of  in  terms  of  happiness,  self- 
development,  and  service. 

Man's  problem  is  so  to  apprehend  the  world  and  himself 
that  the  waste  of  life — the  waste  of  energy,  of  time,  and 
Better  aim  to  °^  opportunity — shall  be  less.  The  plastic 
save  waste  in  and  changing  body,  the  equally  plastic  and 

c*  changing  mind  which  must  be  developed 

as  it  changes  or  loses  its  opportunity,  the  ever-changing 
environment  of  society  and  nature — shall  these  be  so 
controlled  with  reference  to  a  clearly  conceived  and  in- 
telligent end  that  the  inevitable  change  shall  spell  prog- 
ress? It  remains  with  man  himself,  who  is  gradually 
mastering  the  teleological  principle  within  his  own  realm, 
to  say. 

Man  has  already  through  his  own  efforts  brought  about 
an  age  of  science,  and  thereby  put  himself  into  possession 
_,  ,  of  a  marvellous  instrument  of  control  for 

Man's  great  .  ,  .      . 

achievements      the  attainment  of  any  aim  he  may  conceive 

imperfectly  for  himself.  Through  science  he  has  de- 
used.  .  ,  -  .  1  !•  M  • 

vised  means  of  production  and  distribution 
which  have  so  increased  the  world's  wealth  that  there  is 
enough  to  provide  all  with  abundance.  He  has  invented 
machinery  which  does  his  work  and  gives  him  time  for 
leisure.  He  has  developed  scientific  knowledge  which 
gives  him  power  to  eradicate  most  of  the  world's  physical 
suffering  and  disease.  He  has  worked  out  a  psychology 
which  enables  him  to  train  and  utilize  his  powers  with  a 


36  SOCIAL  PRINCIPLES  OF  EDUCATION 

minimum  of  loss  and  waste.  Man  has  enough  and  knows 
enough  to  be  living  on  an  almost  infinitely  higher  plane 
than  he  now  occupies.  Who  of  us  lives  as  well  as  he 
knows  how  to  live?  What  society  measures  up  to  its 
concept  of  physical,  mental,  or  social  law?  In  spite  of 
the  world's  large  aggregate  of  material  wealth,  probably 
one- third  of  its  people  go  to  bed  hungry  each  night;  in 
spite  of  modern  machinery  a  large  proportion  of  men  are 
forced  to  endure  a  crushing,  grinding  toil  which  leaves 
no  opportunity  for  leisure  and  development;  in  spite  of 
our  scientific  knowledge  we  allow  preventable  diseases 
to  claim  their  millions  every  year;  and  in  spite  of  our 
knowledge  of  a  scientific  pedagogy  we  undoubtedly 
cause  the  child  to  waste  half  of  the  time  he  spends  in 
school. 

It  is  no  longer  a  question  of  knowledge  with  man,  but 
a  question  of  values,  a  matter  of  aim.  Man  needs  better 
Better  aim  the  *°  conceive  himself .  What  things  are  most 
great  necessity  worth  while?  What  does  it  best  pay  the  in- 
for  progress.  dividual  and  society  to  strive  for?  Is  it  true 
that  the  life  is  more  than  meat  and  the  body  than  rai- 
ment? Is  happiness  worth  more  than  wealth?  Are  richly 
developed  powers  of  more  value  than  indulgence  and 
ease,  and  is  serving  others  a  higher  ideal  than  compelling 
service?  The  answer  to  these  questions  will  depend  on 
man's  clearness  of  vision  in  apprehending  his  aim;  and 
the  answer  will  also  determine  the  distance  man  has  pro- 
gressed in  his  evolution  toward  that  higher  ideal  which 
is  the  end  of  his  striving. 


AIM  IN  EDUCATION  37 


II.    Aim  to  Be  Found  Only  in  Experience 

How  and  where  does  man  find  his  aim?  Whence  comes 
it?  Ex  nihilo  nihil  fit.  Aim  cannot  be  set  up  de  novo. 
Past  experience  ^or  can  ^  be  created  by  the  fulminations 
the  source  of  of  reason.  The  philosopher  cannot  retire 
to  his  retreat,  and  there,  far  from  the  dis- 
tractions of  the  crowd,  evolve  it  out  of  the  workings  of 
his  own  mind.  Aim  can  be  discovered  only  in  experience. 
The  aim  which  man  to-day  sets  up  to  be  reached  by  to- 
morrow's activities  is  all  shot  through  with  the  colors 
of  yesterday.  The  past  gives  him  direction,  the  present 
gives  opportunity  for  activity,  and  the  future  utilizes  the 
results.  Aim  is,  after  all,  nothing  but  the  pleasant  and 
profitable  of  yesterday  projected  into  to-morrow  as  its 
goal.  And  when  to-morrow  shall  have  been  successfully 
lived,  its  little  step  of  progress  will  have  placed  the  aim 
higher  for  the  next  day.  Thus  man  is  forever  pursuing  a 
flying  goal,  which  he  himself  casts  ever  on  before  him. 
And  it  is  this  fact  which  raises  him  from  kinship  with 
what  was  in  the  lower  realms  of  being — the  realm  of 
mechanism,  of  chemism,  and  of  organism — to  the  highest 
realm  of  being,  that  of  the  conscious  realization  and  pur- 
suit of  an  aim  which  finally  leads  him  to  approach  in- 
finity in  his  development. 

It  is  then  in  the  day's  work;  in  the  crush  and  toil  and 
struggle  of  life;  in  its  joys  and  its  sorrows,  its  victories 
and  defeats,  its  hopes  and  its  fears,  that 
man  fods  tne  materials  out  of  which  to 
construct  his  life's  aim.  For  these  are  the 
things  of  value.  These  are  the  real  things  of  life.  It  is 
out  of  them  that  he  must  select  the  things  that  are  worth 


38  SOCIAL  PRINCIPLES  OF  EDUCATION 

while.    Out  of  them  he  must  develop  his  life-theory,  his 
concept  of  what,  for  him,  are  the  great  "goods"  of  life. 
Only  through  the  medium  of  immediate,  concrete  ex- 
perience does  man  come  to  conceive  his  end. 
The  three  What,  then,  is  experience?    It  cannot  be 

aspects  of  defined  in  terms  which  are  simpler  than 
ence"  itself,  but  its  various  aspects  may  be  noted. 
Experience  may  be  described  from  three  standpoints,  (i) 
as  a  process,  (2)  as  a  product,  and  (3)  as  to  its  function. 
As  a  process,  experience  is  the  activity  of  the  self,  the 
reaction  of  the  self  to  its  environment.  A  being  incapable 
of  response,  or  one  devoid  of  environment, 
would  be  utterly  unable  to  experience.  Ex- 
perience must  be  achieved;  it  cannot  be 
received.  There  is  no  way  in  which  it  can  be  given. 
Further,  since  the  reacting  self  is  essentially  a  social  self, 
and  the  environment  which  calls  forth  the  reaction  is 
essentially  a  social  environment,  the  experience  process 
which  is  the  resultant  of  their  interaction  is  also  social 
in  its  nature  and  may  be  defined  as  social  participation. 
The  life-span  of  the  individual  may  reach  its  three 
score  and  ten;  the  life  of  society  is  continuous  from  the 
Social  nature  beginning  of  human  generations  to  their 
of  the  expert-  end.  Man  normally  finds  his  life-process 

ce  process.        ^Q  ^  a  ^^  Q£  ^g  jarger  socjal  process, 

whose  origin  far  antedates  his  own,  whose  presence  fur- 
nishes the  matrix  out  of  which  his  own  development 
grows,  and  whose  end  lies  at  the  close  of  the  race's  his- 
tory. From  birth  until  death  man  never  knows  a  moment 
when  he  does  not  breathe  a  social  atmosphere,  measure 
himself  by  social  standards,  minister  to  social  needs,  and 
adjust  himself  to  social  requirements.  The  activities  of 
the  self  are,  then,  both  in  their  origin  and  their  end,  social 


AIM  IN  EDUCATION  39 

activities.  Hence  the  experience  process  of  the  individual 
is  limited  by  and  included  within  the  wider  social  proc- 
ess. There  is  no  experience  which  does  not  have  its 
social  setting  and  coloring.  On  the  other  hand,  there  is 
no  social  process  except  as  it  is  made  up  of  the  experience 
processes  of  individuals,  wrought  out  in  the  day's  living. 
For  society  has  no  existence  except  in  the  lives  of  the  in- 
dividuals of  which  it  is  constituted. 

As  a  product,  experience  is  the  residual  elements  re- 
maining from  the  reaction  of  the  self  to  its  environment, 
the  effects  left  in  mind  and  organism  from 
^e  life-process.  It  is  conserved  in  the  or- 
ganism as  habits,  or  a  set  of  organized  re- 
actions, tendencies,  and  capacities;  and  in  the  mind  as 
criteria  of  reference,  or  images,  ideas,  judgments,  and 
standards  of  values  with  their  various  connections.  Na- 
tive tendencies  and  capacities  are  a  social  heritage,  the 
habits  of  the  race  transmitted  to  the  individual,  and 
hence  are  essentially  social.  Individual  habits  and  the 
various  criteria  of  reference  are  likewise  social  in  their 
nature  in  that  they  are  impossible  without  social  partici- 
pation, or  the  functioning  of  the  self  in  its  social  environ- 
ment. And  further,  given  the  experience-process,  they 
are  inevitable,  for  all  experience  leaves  its  effect  in  mind 
and  organism.  Stated  differently,  nothing  can  be  called 
experience  which  does  not  leave  its  effect  in  mind  and 
organism,  and  no  effect  can  be  produced  in  mind  and 
organism. except  through  experience.  Both  quantity  and 
quality  of  experience  as  a  product  will  depend,  therefore, 
on  the  character  of  the  experience-process,  which  in  turn 
is  conditioned  by  the  character  of  its  two  fundamental 
factors — the  self  and  its  environment,  with  their  mutual 
interaction. 


40  SOCIAL  PRINCIPLES  OF  EDUCATION 

As  to  its  function,  experience  serves  first  of  all  as  a 
criterion  of  reality,  or  of  that  of  which  we  must  take  ac- 
Experience  count  in  our  life-process.  The  shadowy  and 
in  (3)  its  elusive  forms  of  abstract  truth  and  ultimate 

function.  reality  which  to  the  rationalist  have  their 

being  somewhere  outside  the  boundaries  of  experience, 
may  be  interesting  enough  as  figures  of  the  mind,  but 
they  have  little  weight  in  our  conduct.  It  is  only  the 
body  of  concrete  truth  and  immediate  reality  with  which 
we  touch  elbows  in  the  day's  living  that  really  has  a  grip 
upon  our  actions  and  an  influence  in  shaping  our  lives. 
Experience  occupies  the  place  of  supervisor  of  weights 
and  measures  in  our  life's  economy.  It  is  the  court  of 
last  resort  in  adjusting  values  among  our  motives  and 
actions.  Thus,  experience  is  pre-eminently  an  instru- 
ment of  control.  Motives  and  acts  upon  which  experi- 
ence has  put  the  seal  of  its  approval  come  to  be  the  ones 
which  function  in  our  behavior,  while  the  ones  which  are 
not  approved  drop  out  and  are  lost.  It  is  in  this  way  that 
self-control  arises.  Or,  better,  a  body  of  experience  func- 
tioning in  directing  behavior  is  self-control.  Experience 
determines  attitude,  which  is  but  another  name  for  the 
degree  of  receptivity  of  the  already-achieved  experience 
product  toward  new  experience,  the  readiness  of  the  self 
to  respond  toward  its  environment.  Finally,  through  ex- 
perience, the  old  constantly  serves  as  a  starting-point 
for  the  new.  There  are  no  gaps  in  our  life-process,  ex- 
perience is  continuous.  Further,  experience  can  be  gained 
only  by  reconstructing  the  experience  already  on  hand. 
Acquisition  is,  therefore,  but  a  process  of  assimilation. 
It  is  this  fact  that  gives  life  its  continuity  and  makes 
possible  a  personal  self. 


AIM  IN  EDUCATION  41 


III.     Education  as  a  Selective  Agent  in  the  Social 
Process 

The  social  process,  constituted  as  it  is  of  the  lives  of 
an  infinitude  of  individuals,  is  almost  infinitely  complex. 
Great  com-  ^  *s  as  broad  as  the  sum  total  of  human 
piexity  of  the  experience  and  as  long  as  the  racial  past.  It 

social  process.       .g  an  ep;tome  Qf  all  that  men  haye  thought 

and  felt  and  done  and  are  now  thinking,  feeling,  and 
doing.  But  not  all  the  experience  through  which  society 
has  lived  and  is  living  to-day  is  equally  valuable  as  ex- 
perience; much  of  it  is  blind,  without  conscious  purpose; 
much  of  it  exists  but  for  the  moment,  and  does  not  pos- 
sess permanent  value;  much  of  it  is  not  typical,  and  hence 
will  not  serve  to  guide  others.  Furthermore,  society, 
busied  with  its  affairs  and  blinded  with  its  immediate 
interests,  is  not  always  conscious  of  its  own  aim.  Men 
are  not  yet  wholly  at  home  in  the  business  of  reflecting 
on  the  end  of  their  striving  and  the  best  means  of  reach- 
ing this  end.  The  teleological  principle  has  not  risen  to 
full  consciousness  in  man. 

It  becomes  necessary,  therefore,  in  a  progressive  so- 
ciety, that  there  shall  be  some  agency  whose  function  it 
Hence  the  *s  **>  se^ect  out  the  valuable  and  the  typical 
necessity  of  a  from  the  social  process,  and  to  accentuate 

selective  agent.    and  ^p^ag^  fos  by  bringing  it  to  the 

social  consciousness,  particularly  by  causing  it  to  be  in- 
corporated in  the  experience  of  each  new  generation.  It 
is  in  this  way  that  the  trivial  and  irrelevant  drops  out 
and  the  significant  and  the  permanent  remains  as  a  part 
of  the  social  heritage.  It  is  in  this  way  that  the  progress 
which  has  already  been  attained  is  conserved  and  the  aim 


42  SOCIAL  PRINCIPLES  OF  EDUCATION 

set  higher  for  to-morrow.  For  the  goal  is  advanced  only 
as  each  generation  in  its  own  climbing  omits  the  mis- 
takes and  utilizes  the  successes  of  the  preceding  ones. 
Defined  broadly  from  the  social  side,  education  is  the  se- 
lective agent  which  sets  up  and  seeks  to  attain  the  social  aim. 

As  an  institution,  education  emerges  in  a  developing 
society  as  evolution  becomes  conscious;  that  is,  as  men 
come  to  possess  the  power  to  reflect  on 
selective'agent.  values  and  weigh  motives  and  conduct. 
In  other  words,  education  has  its  rise  when 
men  become  able  to  subject  experience  to  analysis  with 
a  view  to  determining  an  aim  to  be  achieved  in  the  ex- 
perience process. 

When  this  stage  has  been  reached,  education  is  both 
necessary  and  possible.  It  is  necessary  because  conscious 
Education  the  evolution  or  rational  progress  assumes  the 
product  of  so-  selection  of  ends  and  the  means  for  attain- 
ciai  necessity.  jng  ^nem  ^^  ft£s  selection  is  possible 

only  through  education.  Education  is  possible  at  this 
stage,  since  a  society  which  has  progressed  thus  far  is 
capable  of  formulating  an  aim  and  providing  means  for 
its  attainment. 

Education  as  an  institution  consists,  in  its  most  gen- 
eral sense,  of  all  the  factors  which  function  as  a  means 
Factors  ^n  reaching  the  social  aim.  These  factors 

involved  may  be  classed  into  two  broad  types:  first, 

in  education.  those  which  are  not  organized  or  special- 
ized with  reference  to  education  but  whose  specific  func- 
tion lies  in  some  other  phase  of  the  social  process;  and, 
second,  the  organized  and  specialized  institution,  the 
school. 

Prominent  among  the  unorganized  factors  of  educa- 
tion are  Lthe  social  traditions,  standards,  and  institu- 


AIM  IN  EDUCATION  43 

tions  through  which  the  social  mind  and  purpose  are 
expressed.  The  home,  the  neighborhood,  the  church, 
the  state,  the  vocations  and  avocations 
a11  Play  an  important  part  in  education. 
They  supply  the  general  substratum  upon 
which  the  specialized  institution,  the  school,  must  rest; 
they  constitute  the  matrix  out  of  which  education  has 
its  rise,  and  furnish  the  atmosphere  in  which  it  comes  to 
its  development. 

The  unorganized  factors  of  education  do  not  formulate 
and  provide  for  the  carrying  out  of  the  educational  aim; 
These  deter-  *hev  ^ave  otner  functions.  Yet  it  is  pre- 
mine  the  edu-  cisely  in  them,  and  in  them  alone,  that  the 
cationaiaim.  educational  aim  is  to  be  found.  These  are 
the  expression  of  the  social  mind  and  purpose.  They  are 
the  various  modes  of  the  social  process.  And  the  social 
process  carries  its  own  end  or  aim  inherent  in  itself. 


IV.  The  Social  Aim  is  but  a  Statement  of  the  Progress 
Already  Made  as  Manifested  in  tJte  Present  Social 
Process 

There  can  be  no  true  aim  except  in  terms 
°^  ^e  social  process,  in  terms  of  the  lives 
found  only  in  of  men  and  women  as  they  touch  shoulders 
TOth  reality  in  the  thick  of  life's  experi- 
ences. An  aim  formulated  in  any  other 
terms  might  possess  form,  but  it  would  lack  content;  it 
would  lack  reality,  and  therefore  be  without  compelling 
power  to  direct  conduct. 

The  educational  aim  is  synonymous  with  the  social 
aim;  indeed,  the  educational  aim  is  but  the  social  aim 
formulated  and  brought  to  the  consciousness  of  society. 


44  SOCIAL  PRINCIPLES  OF  EDUCATION 

The  educational  aim  thus  has  its  origin  in  the  social 

process  and  leads  back  to  it.    The  problem  of  the  school, 

.     ,  the  special  organ  of  education,  therefore  be- 

The  educational  ,  ,   /-    . 

aim  identical      comes  perfectly  definite,  even  though  diffi- 
with  the  social     cujt    jt  js  to  discover  the  social  aim  through 

an  interpretation  of  the  social  process,  and 
then  do  its  best  to  realize  this  aim  in  the  experience  of 
its  pupils.  It  is  to  fit  the  individual  to  be  a  participant 
in  a  concrete,  changing  social  experience  which  is  going 
on  about  him  and  of  which  his  own  life-process  forms  an 
integral  part. 

A  definition  of  the  educational  aim  which  makes  it 
but  an  interpretation  of  the  social  process  has  several 
The  social  aim  advantages.  Not  the  least  of  these  is  its 
of  education  is  definiteness.  It  takes  the  definition  out  of 

the  realm  of  pure  opinion  and  attaches  it 
to  reality.  It  therefore  supplies  a  basis  for  criticising 
the  educational  process  to  determine  whether  it  is  result- 
ing in  the  accomplishment  of  its  aim.  Such  is  not  the 
case  with  any  definition  which  conceives  the  aim  as  out- 
side of  or  prior  to  the  process,  and  the  process,  hence,  as 
intermediary  in  reaching  the  aim.  Good  examples  of 
indefinite  definitions  of  this  kind  are  found  in  the 

statements  of      following  two,  which   serve    as    excellent 

representatives  of  their  type:  "Education  is 
the  harmonious  development  of  all  the  powers  of  the  in- 
dividual."   "Education  is  the  adjustment  of  the  indi- 
vidual to  social  living." 
.  .  .  .       ,_         But  what  in  the  first  definition  are  we  to 

Indefinite  nature 

of  an  aim  from    understand  by    powers    and  by    harmo- 
outsidethe        nious"?    This  conception  rests  on  the  im- 

social  process.  .  r  . 

possible  assumption  that  there  are  pow- 
ers" or  "faculties"  per  se.  But  what  meaning  can  a 


AIM  IN  EDUCATION  45 

power  have  except  as  the  ability  to  do  some  immediate 
and  concrete  thing,  to  function  in  the  actual  reconstruc- 
tion of  an  actual  experience?  The  term  "power"  can 
have  absolutely  no  definable  meaning  divorced  from  a 
concrete  aim  for  the  realizing  of  which  it  is  to  be  exer- 
cised. Powers  in  the  abstract  are  but  creatures  of  the 
mind,  and  have  no  connection  with  experience,  and 
hence  possess  no  reality. 

Nor  can  the  term  "harmonious"  be  any  more  defi- 
nitely limited  in  such  a  definition  as  that  in  which  it  oc- 
curs.   How  are  we  to  know  when  powers 

The  concrete  .  5  . 

nature  of  are  in  harmony?    What  shall  be  the  cn- 

"  power  "and      terion?   Is  there  such  a  thing  as  harmony 

"harmonious." 

per  se  any  more  than  there  are  powers  per 
se?  When  are  the  powers  of  memory,  imagination,  ob- 
servation, judging,  and  reasoning  in  harmony?  What 
should  be  the  amount  and  character  of  each  as  compared 
with  the  other?  Has  the  educated  Chinaman  discovered 
the  secret  when  he  has  committed  to  memory  the  seven 
sacred  books,  but  without  much  thought  as  to  their  in- 
tent? If  we  say  no,  he  will  tell  us  that  he  must  do  pre- 
cisely this  in  order  to  successful  functioning  in  Chinese 
society.  Are  our  powers  less  harmoniously  developed 
than  were  those  of  the  red  man,  who  far  excelled  us 
in  observation?  This  can  only  be  answered  when  we 
know  whether  our  social  process  requires  the  propor- 
tion of  observation  that  was  required  in  the  experi- 
ence of  the  Indian. 

The  mind's  different  modes  of  activity, 

Powers  possess  .  . 

reality  only        such  as  memory,  observation,   reasoning, 

when  acting  in  etc  are  but  modes  of  experience  in  a  life- 
real  experience.  *.  .  , 

process  whose  character  is  determined  by 
the  social  practice  of  the  society  of  which  it  forms  a 


46  SOCIAL  PRINCIPLES  OF  EDUCATION 

part.  There  is  no  test  for  the  harmony  of  these  dif- 
ferent processes  outside  of  the  end  to  be  attained  by 
them;  that  is,  outside  of  the  way  they  function  with 
reference  to  concrete  objects  in  actual  experience.  There 
is  no  way  in  which  one  can  take  the  mind  as  a  thing-in- 
itself  and  decide.  As  soon  as  this  is  attempted  there  is 
no  criterion  connected  with  reality,  and  the  discussion  is 
waged  in  the  realm  of  opinion,  and  argument  but  results 
in  confusion. 

The  second  of  the  definitions  quoted  represents  the 
social  side  of  education  as  the  first  represents  the  indi- 
vidual side.    It  goes  without  saying  that  if, 

Progressive  so-  ,....,,.  , 

ciety  demands  as  has  been  shown,  the  individual  is  to  be 
reconstruction  defined  in  terms  of  his  social  functioning, 

of  experience.  . 

this  must  be  understood  with  reference  to 
a  progressive  society.  But  this  is  precisely  what  the 
definition  does  not  provide  for.  Such  a  definition  implies 
the  possibility  of  training  a  set  of  capacities,  powers,  or 
habits  so  that  they  will  fit  the  individual  into  the  social 
situation,  where  he  is  to  be  left,  his  education  completed 
and  himself  "adjusted"  to  living  in  the  society  of  which 
he  forms  a  part.  The  trouble  with  such  a  conception  is 
that  society  would  need  to  be  entirely  static  in  order  for 
this  adjustment  to  last.  But  the  world  moves.  And 
such  an  individual  would  no  sooner  have  become  adjusted 
than  a  progressive  society  would  move  away  from  him, 
and  he  would  be  left  stranded.  Such  a  concept  might 
be  adequate  for  the  old  Chinese  education  in  a  static  so- 
ciety or  for  Plato's  ideal  state  where,  when  things  were 
once  adjusted,  they  were  to  remain  so  forever;  but  it  is 
unsuited  to  any  progressive  society. 

A  definition  of  education  which  finds  the  aim  contained 
in  the  social  process  also  has  the  great  advantage  of  an 


AIM  IN  EDUCATION  47 

immediate  as  opposed  to  a  remote  aim.  For  the  aim  be- 
comes but  the  successful  carrying  out  of  the  process  as  a 
Compelling  process.  The  question  is  not  whether  an  in- 
power  of  an  dividual  has  this  day  taken  an  infinitesimal 

immediate  aim.    step   toward    a   goal   which  js  not  Qnly  m_ 

defined  but  indefinitely  distant,  but  whether  he  has  suc- 
cessfully carried  out  to-day's  part  of  the  life-process, 
whether  he  has  had  real  experience  with  some  of  the  act- 
ual values  of  life.  The  educational  ideal  has  often  lost 
in  compelling  power  through  the  vagueness  and  remote- 
ness referred  to.  A  hard  task  becomes  but  little  more  in- 
viting to  a  boy  upon  his  being  told  that  he  will  need  the 
power  to  be  secured  through  its  mastery  when  he  has 
grown  to  manhood.  But  if  he  can  be  shown  that  this 
task  is  related  to  his  own  immediate  life-process,  to  what 
appeals  to  him  as  worth  while  in  his  present  experience, 
then  a  powerful  motive  has  been  put  into  his  life.  The 
aim  is  now  not  something  supernumerary  and  beyond 
the  possibility  of  realization,  something  to  awaken,  as- 
piration, but  something  definite  to  do  here  and  now.  And 
this  is  far  more  fruitful. 

The  standpoint  has  also  the  further  advantage  of  mak- 
ing end  and  means  but  the  two  aspects  of  a  common 
process,  and  does  away  with  the  misunder- 

The  social  aim     r          .  .....  . 

of  education  standings  concerning  their  right  relations 
relates  means  which  has  so  often  divorced  them.  Educa- 

to  ends.  .11  »  ..... 

tion  thus  becomes  the  process  of  socializing 
the  individual.  It  makes  his  aim  to  be  participation  in 
a  social  process  which  is  constantly  in  the  course  of  re- 
construction, and  such  participation  as  shall  result  in 
progress  both  for  himself  and  society.  This  means  that 
his  own  experience  must  be  in  a  constant  state  of  recon- 
struction. Further,  the  reconstruction  must  be  such  as 


48  SOCIAL  PRINCIPLES  OF  EDUCATION 


will  make  Him  growingly  conscious  of  social  values,  and 
give  him  increasing  control  over  the  processes  of  his  own 
experience.  This,  in  effect,  defines  education  as  a  process 
going  on  within  the  individual.  As  a  product,  education 
can  be  denned  in  terms  of  the  amount  of  control  which 
the  individual  has  over  his  own  experience. 

The  separation  of  the  educational  aim  from  the  social 
process  has  its  counterpart  in  other  social  institutions  as 
well  as  in  the  school.  The  misconception  as 
*°  ami  ^oes  no^  a^tach  to  any  one  institu- 
from  social  aim  tion  of  society,  therefore,  but  rather  marks 
the  school"  4°  a  certarn  stage  in  social  evolution.  Every 
social  institution  at  the  time  of  its  origin 
grows  immediately  out  of  the  needs  of  the  society  which 
gives  it  birth.  This  is  but  equivalent  to  saying  that  it  is 
created  for  the  purpose  of  carrying  out  a  conscious  social 
aim.  As  society  becomes  more  and  more  complex, 
greater  demands  are  placed  on  the  institution.  The  in- 
stitution itself  must  therefore  become  more  complex, 
and  there  grows  up  within  the  institution  a  specialized 
group  of  individuals  whose  function  it  is  to  direct  and 
carry  on  the  work  of  the  institution.  Here 
we  ^^  ^e  origins  of  the  professions  and  of 
to  divorce  professionalism.  And  a  professional  class, 
fromsodety.  busied  with  the  special  work  of  an  institu- 
tion, are  always  in  danger  of  dropping  out 
of  touch  with  the  wider  social  aim.  If  this  occurs,  they 
come  to  look  upon  the  institution  as  an  end  in  itself  and 
forget  that  it  is  but  a  part  of  a  greater  process,  to  whose 
needs  it  is  its  function  to  minister.  As  the  breach  be- 
tween the  institution  and  society  widens,  the  aim  of  the 
institution  comes  more  and  more  to  be  fixed  by  the  pro- 
fessional class  who  direct  it,  and  less  and  less  by  the  social 


AIM  IN  EDUCATION  49 

process.  It  is  at  this  stage  that  an  aim  is  likely  to  emerge 
which  is  formulated  from  without  the  process,  and  hence 
not  definable  in  its  terms,  as  is  illustrated  in  the  defini- 
tions of  education  just  discussed.  There  is  abundant 
evidence  for  this  statement  in  the  history  of  the  church, 
the  state,  the  school,  vocations,  and  even  the  home!  It 
is  this  tendency  of  institutions  to  separate  themselves 
from  the  actual  social  process  which  gives  rise  to  the 
necessity  for  revolutions,  again  to  place  the  institution 
in  touch  with  the  life  and  experience  of  the  society  of 
which  it  forms  a  part. 

Education  must,  therefore,  in  all  progressive  societies 

be  in  a  constant  state  of  reconstruction.    It  must  keep 

,      .  pace  with  the  social  ideal  and,  accurately 

The  educa-  .,..,,  . 

tionai  aim  must  interpreting  this  ideal,  must  make  this  its 
be  constantly  aim.  Instead  of  setting  up  an  aim  of  its 

redefined.  . 

own  in  such  abstract  terms  as  culture, 
"complete  living,"  "development  of  powers,"  etc.,  edu- 
cation must  identify  itself  with  the  most  vital  concepts 
and  movements  of  society.  It  must  realize  that  there  is 
no  culture  that  does  not  relate  itself  to  social  participa- 
tion; that  complete  living  is  realized  only  in  the  largest 
possible  contribution  to  the  common  good;  that  powers 
not  employed  in  worthy  social  activities  are  as  levers 
without  fulcrums;  that  the  only  way  to  educate  an  indi- 
dividual  is  to  socialize  him. 

Coming  back  to  the  original  questions  stated  at  the 
beginning  of  the  chapter  as  constituting  our  problem, 
Summary  of  tnev  mav  now  ^e  answered  in  brief  as  fol- 
answers  to  our  lows:  The  general  nature  of  aim  consists  in 

the  formulation  of  the  best  elements  of  a 
present  process  as  a  goal  for  future  activities.  Experi- 
ence is  the  only  test  of  values,  and  that  which  has  stood 


50  SOCIAL  PRINCIPLES  OF  EDUCATION 

the  test  of  experience  becomes  the  end  of  future  endeavor. 
The  educational  aim  originates  in  the  requirements  of 
the  social  process  and  leads  the  individual  into  helpful 
and  efficient  experience  as  a  part  of  this  process.  Educa- 
tion can  have  no  meaning  except  as  it  represents  the 
highest  ideals  of  society  for  the  individual  acting  his  part 
faithfully  in  the  concrete  affairs  of  his  day.  Any  other 
definition  of  education  leaves  it  without  point  of  contact 
with  experience,  and  hence  without  reality. 

The  function  of  the  educational  aim  is  to  guide  in  the 
selection  of  the  means  for  realizing  the  social  aim  of  which 
Necessity  for  the  educational  aim  is  a  part;  that  is,  in 
analysis  of  the  determining  the  subject-matter,  method,  and 
ai  process,  organization  of  education.  For  these,  the 
constituent  elements  of  the  school,  are  the  instruments 
devised  by  society  for  the  -carrying  out  of  its  aim  through 
education.  And  only  as  the  means  are  adequate  can  the 
end  be  attained.  The  present  aim  of  education  is  to  be 
formulated  only  by  an  analysis  and  interpretation  of  the 
social  process.  The  next  section  of  our  discussion  will  be 
devoted  to  an  attempt  at  such  an  analysis  and  interpre- 
tation. 

REFERENCES 

Bagley,  Educational  Values;  also,  The  Educative  Process, 
ch.  Ill;  Butler,  The  Meaning  of  Education;  Cubberly,  Changing 
Conceptions  of  Education;  Dewey,  Ethical  Principles  Underlying 
Education;  Eliot,"  Education  for  Efficiency;  Emerson,  Essay  on 
Education;  Howerth,  Social  Aim  in  Education;  Monroe,  Text- 
book in  the  History  of  Education;  O'Shea,  Education  as  Adjust- 
ment, Part  II;  Plato,  Republic,  Book  VII;  Rudiger,  Principles 
of  Education,  chs.  III-V;  Spencer,  Education,  ch.  I;  Ward, 
Dynamic  Sociology,  ch.  XIV. 


PART  II 
THE  SOCIAL  PROCESS  AND  EDUCATION 

CHAPTER  IV 

THE  NATURE  OF  THE  SOCIAL  PROCESS 

It  was  shown  in  the  last  chapter  that  the  educational 
aim  originates  in  the  social  process  and  leads  back  to  it; 

in  other  words,  that  the  highest  end  of  edu- 
sociai  process?  cation  is  to  fit  the  individual  to  do  his  part 

in  carrying  out  the  social  activities  in  which 
he  finds  himself  a  participant.  But  such  statements, 
while  perfectly  definite,  are  not  very  illuminating.  For 
the  social  process,  consisting  as  it  does  of  manifold  ac- 
tivities of  men,  is  almost  infinitely  complex,  and  needs  to 
be  analyzed  into  its  simpler  elements  if  such  a  concept  is 
to  be  useful  as  a  norm  in  education.  What  goes  to  make 
up  the  social  process?  What  is  its  nature?  What  are 
its  constituents?  How  are  they  interrelated,  and  how 
is  the  whole  related  to  the  life,  experience,  and  educa- 
tion of  the  individual? 

The  results  sought  through  an  analysis  of 
process  could  be  reached  equally 


individual  or  well  through  an  analysis  of  the  modes  of  in- 
view.  P°U  dividual  experience.  For  the  modes  of  ac- 
tivity by  which  society  carries  on  its  collec- 
tive life,  and  the  modes  of  experience  constituting  the 
life  of  the  individual  are  but  the  two  aspects  of  one 

51 


52          SOCIAL  PRINCIPLES  OF  EDUCATION 

unitary  fact.  Hence  the  problem  is  identical  whether 
approached  from  the  one  standpoint  or  the  other.  The 
advantage  of  approaching  the  problem  from  the  social 
point  of  view  is  that  it  serves  to  emphasize  still  further 
the  essentially  social  nature  of  education,  both  as  to  its 
aim  and  its  content. 

Any  complete  and  wholly  adequate  analysis  of  the  so- 
cial process  must  deal  with  the  process  as  a  whole,  and 
A  cross-section  no^  smiply  with  a  cross-section  of  it.  For, 
view  not  ade-  no  matter  how  accurate  the  analysis  of  the 
social  activities  of  to-day,  or  how  perfectly 
they  are  interpreted  per  se,  their  real  meaning  and  sig- 
nificance will  escape  us  so  long  as  they  are  cut  off  from 
the  process  of  yesterday  and  that  of  to-morrow.  The  very 
core  of  the  concept  of  social  evolution  is  unity,  and  this, 
in  a  dynamic  society,  means  continuity.  An  interpreta- 
tion of  the  present  involves,  then,  both  the  past  and  the 
future.  What  is  can  be  understood  only  in  the  light  of 
what  has  been,  and  also  what  mil  be.  Viewed  by  itself, 
the  present  lacks  perspective,  and  hence  its  values  are 
distorted  and  are  seen  out  of  true  proportion. 

Manifestly  it  is  beyond  the  scope  of  the  present  study, 
as  it  is  certainly  beyond  the  ability  of  the  writer,  to  enter 
Limitations  for  i^o  as  far-reaching  an  analysis  of  the  social 
the  present  process  as  that  just  indicated.  An  inter- 
pretation of  the  past  requires  an  evalua- 
tion of  the  great  lines  of  human  culture  in  the  process  of 
their  evolution;  it  weighs  developing  civilization  in  the 
making,  and  gives  each  factor  its  value  in  the  light  of 
what  it  has  come  to  and  what  it  seems  to  be  pointing 
toward.  The  interpretation  of  the  present  demands  even 
greater  scope  of  vision  and  depth  of  insight.  For  the 
sieve  of  time  has  large  meshes,  and  most  of  the  trivial 


THE  NATURE  OF  THE  SOCIAL  PROCESS       53 

and  insignificant  from  the  life  of  the  past  has  been  lost 
out  without  being  carried  over  to  the  present,  and  hence 
we  do  not  have  to  trouble  with  it.  But  the  present,  in 
the  midst  of  which  we  live,  move,  and  have  our  being,  is 
a  mighty,  rushing  torrent.  We  can  judge  the  general 
direction  of  its  current,  but  we  are  bewildered  by  its 
eddies  and  cross-currents;  its  waves  of  impulse  and  tides 
of  passion  often  seem  to  be  flowing  backward ;  its  progress 
is  impeded  by  masses  of  flotsam  and  jetsam;  its  hidden 
rocks  and  sunken  reefs  have  never  been  fully  charted. 

This  makes  the  evaluing  of  the  present  social  process 
difficult,  but  not  wholly  impossible.  It  is  difficult  be- 
cause of  the  amazing  complexity  of  present- 
day  ^e'  anc^  a^so  because  of  the  lack  of  per- 
spective; neither  men  nor  events  can  be 
seen  clearly  when  one  is  too  close  to  them.  The  task  is 
not  impossible,  because  the  factors  of  the  problem  are 
definite  and  their  interrelation  in  the  process  analyzable. 
The  interpretation  of  the  future  must,  of  course,  be  in 
large  degree  hypothetical.  Yet  this  in  no  sense  invali- 
dates the  interpretation  or  renders  it  useless.  An  intel- 
ligent hypothesis  is  a  far  safer  guide  than  blind  chance. 
Indeed,  all  the  conscious  progress  of  the  race  has  been 
accomplished  by  following  promising  hypotheses,  which 
have  had,  of  course,  constantly  to  be  reconstructed  in 
the  light  of  new  experience. 

Our  programme  in  this  work  does  not,  then,  include  a 
comprehensive  analysis  of  the  social  process;  and  fortu- 
An  outline  nately  such  an  analysis  is  not  required  in 
view  will  serve  our  problem,  which  is  to  discover  the  social 
and  philosophical  basis  of  education,  rather 
than  to  work  out  the  details  of  the  educational  process 
as  carried  on  in  the  school.  Our  purpose  will  be  served 


54  SOCIAL  PRINCIPLES  OF  EDUCATION 

by  an  outline  analysis  of  the  social  process  sufficiently 
complete  to  show  its  chief  interrelations  and  the  place 
of  education  in  the  larger  whole  of  which  it  forms  a  part. 
The  social  process,  although  so  complex,  can  be  ana- 
lyzed into  comparatively  few  great  lines  of  experience. 
In  making  such  an  analysis,  however,  it 
must  not  be  understood  for  a  moment  that 
into  a  few  these  lines  are  really  separate  and  inde- 
pendent.  The  social  process  is  essentially 
a  unitary  process;  experience  is  emphat- 
ically a  unitary  experience,  and  the  experience  process  is 
one  and  not  many.  The  analysis  which  follows  only 
attempts  to  emphasize  the  different  elements  which, 
interwoven,  constitute  the  whole,  whether  this  whole  is 
considered  as  the  unitary  social  process  or  the  equally 
unitary  experience  process  constituting  the  life  of  the 
individual. 

REFERENCES 

Forrest,  Development  of  Western  Civilization  (a  genetic  view) ; 
Giddings,  Principles  of  Sociology,  Book  IV,  chs.  I,  II;  Small, 
General  Sociology,  Parts  VI-IX. 


CHAPTER  V 

EDUCATION  AND  INSTITUTIONAL  MODES  OF 
EXPERIENCE 

I.    Institutions  the  Product  of  Social  Evolution 

The  social  process  includes  all  the  interrelated  activ- 
ities of  men.    By  far  the  greater  part  of  these  activities 
are  organized  into  well-defined  groups,  each 

Institutions  an  ,        .         .  .      , 

important  group  having  its  own  particular  structure 

phase  of  the       of  organization  and  technique  of  operation. 

social  process.  n^T  •      j  r       *•    •*• 

We  call  these  organized  groups  of  activities 
institutions.  An  analysis  of  the  social  process  is  there- 
fore largely  an  analysis  of  institutions. 

Institutions  represent  the  collective  development  of 
social  experience.  They  grow  up  naturally  out  of  the 
common  impulses  and  activities  of  men. 
institutions.  The  social  activities  fall  into  various  defi- 
nite groups,  each  group  having  for  its  aim 
the  carrying  out  of  some  phase  of  the  social  purpose. 
One  such  group  gives  us  the  family,  another  the  state, 
another  the  church,  etc.  Each  institution  arises  in  re- 
sponse to  a  social  need  and  gives  expression  to  social  im- 
pulses. New  institutions  emerge  whenever  society  feels 
the  necessity  for  a  specially  organized  set  of  activities 
for  carrying  out  the  social  purpose;  old  institutions  die 
whenever  society  no  longer  needs  such  organized  activ- 
ities. All  progressive  societies  are  constantly  becoming 
conscious  of  new  social  purposes;  hence  new  institutions 

55 


56          SOCIAL  PRINCIPLES  OF  EDUCATION 

are  having  their  birth,  or  existing  institutions  being 
moulded  to  fit  the  social  demands  at  all  times.  Progres- 
sive societies  also  entirely  outgrow  certain  of  their  social 
purposes,  and  hence  have  no  need  for  the  institutions 
whose  function  originally  was  the  realization  of  such 
outgrown  purposes.  Thus  it  is  that  history  is  filled 
with  the  records  of  institutions  that  have  served  their 
purpose  and  been  discarded  by  societies  which  no 
longer  felt  their  need.  Institutions,  therefore,  like  per- 
sons, have  their  birth,  growth  and  development,  decay 
and  death. 

Institutions  are  at  once  the  product  and  the  mode  of 
social  evolution.  They  are  society's  invention  for  pro- 
T  ^^  ^  viding  for  co-operative  activities.  Man's 

Institutions  the     .  .  . 

product  and  impulses  are  essentially  social,  and  his 
mode  of  social  powers  can  be  developed  and  employed 

evolution.  r   ,  f  .          J.  , 

only  as  he  uses  them  in  conjunction  with 
fellow  men.  Hence  institutions  are  the  individual's  op- 
portunity for  self-expression.  He  fits  into  them  as  nat- 
urally as  if  they  had  been  made  especially  for  him;  he 
finds  them  suited  in  organization  and  methods  to  the 
exercise  of  his  powers  and  capacities.  This  must  needs 
be  the  case,  since  hundreds  of  generations,  moved  by 
the  same  impulses  and  endowed  with  the  same  powers 
as  those  possessed  by  himself,  have,  in  trying  out  their 
experience,  left  the  institutions  as  an  expression  of  their 
collective  wisdom,  and  as  their  solution  of  this  particular 
group  of  social  problems  which  now  are  confronting  the 
individual  anew.  The  person  who  is  bearing  his  part  in 
a  progressive  society  will  of  necessity  criticise  matters 
of  detail  in  the  structure  and  method  of  the  various 
institutions,  but  he  will  find  the  fundamental  concepts 
involved  in  them  to  be  adapted  perfectly  to  his  own 


INSTITUTIONAL  MODES  OF  EXPERIENCE      57 

mental  constitution.  He  will  feel  at  home  in  the  social 
institutions  of  his  day,  and  realize  in  them  the  oppor- 
tunity to  function  as  a  member  of  society  and  a  partici- 
pant in  the  social  process. 

Institutions  not  only  furnish  the  opportunity  for  the 
individual  to  function  socially,  but,  on  the  other  hand, 
Conservative  ^ey  ^  some  degree  limit  his  activities  as 
nature  of  well.  For  institutions  are  in  the  highest 

degree  conservative  and  can  change  their 
form  but  slowly.  It  often  happens,  therefore,  that  the 
social  ideal  is  far  ahead  of  social  practice.  Our  theory 
of  political,  social,  and  industrial  democracy  is  not  yet 
realized;  our  dream  of  universal  brotherhood  of  man  is 
still  disturbed  now  and  then  by  the  tramp  of  armies; 
church  practice  has  not  fully  caught  up  with  the  Chris- 
tian ideal;  and  educational  theory  is  very  far  ahead  of 
the  results  achieved  in  schools. 

The  individual  finds  in  the  necessity  of  modifying  in- 
stitutions, to  adapt  them  to  progressive  social  needs,  one 
of  the  chief  opportunities  for  the  exercise  of 
personal  initiative,  and  for  a  contribution 
through  indi-  to  social  advancement.  For  institutions 

vidual  initia-  i  •    •  i         • 

tive>  must  change  as  society  progresses,  else,  in- 

stead of  being  the  instruments  of  progress, 
they  become  barriers  in  its  way.  Further,  the  recon- 
structing of  institutions  can  be  successfully  accomplished 
only  by  their  active  membership,  operating  from  within 
the  institution  and  prompted  by  a  constructive  aim.  The 
iconoclastic  critic,  attacking  the  institution  from  with- 
out its  membership,  may  serve  as  a  goad,  but  there  his 
usefulness  ends.  It  is  ultimately  society's  positive  ideals, 
and  not  its  negative  criticisms,  necessary  as  these  may 
be,  which  constitute  the  structure  of  institutions. 


58  SOCIAL  PRINCIPLES  OF  EDUCATION 

The  individual  is  completely  immersed  in  institutions. 

So  completely  do  the  institutional  activities  cover  the 

The  universal-    wn°le  range  of  social  life  that  the  individual 

ity  of  institu-      finds  it  impossible  to  function  except  in  con- 

onai  influence.  nectjon  ^fo  institutions.    It  is  true  that 


he  may  not  always  have  formal  membership  in  an  insti- 
tution, but  nevertheless  he  is  subject  wholly  to  the  limi- 
tations that  it  imposes  and  the  opportunities  that  it 
offers.  Not  every  one  has  his  name  on  the  church  roll, 
yet  so  completely  do  the  spirit  and  standards  of  the 
church  permeate  the  social  organization  that  its  influence 
is  dominant  in  every  line  of  social  activity.  Similarly 
for  each  of  the  institutions.  The  individual  must  breathe 
an  atmosphere  impregnated  by  their  spirit  and  partici- 
pate in  the  activities  which  constitute  their  life.  In  them 
he  develops  his  powers,  and  to  them  he  owes  his  allegiance 
and  service.  To  fit  the  individual  to  participate  in  the 
institutional  life  of  his  day  becomes,  therefore,  one  of  the 
great  aims  of  education. 

We  will  now  proceed  to  a  brief  consideration  of  some 

of  the  more  important  social  institutions.     From  the 

,  ^          standpoint  of  the  philosophy  of  education, 

Two  relation-  ^  ,       .         .          , 

ships  of  insti-  each  of  the  institutions  is  to  be  looked  upon 
tutionsto  from  f-wo  points  of  view:  First,  its  educa- 

education.  .        .  t      ••••••'« 

twe  influence  upon  the  individual,  the  op- 
portunity it  gives  him  for  self-realization  through  the 
employment  of  his  powers  and  capacities  in  social  ac- 
tivities. Second,  its  setting  a  standard  of  requirement 
or  demand  for  the  individual's  education.  Failing  to 
meet  this  demand,  no  amount  of  learning  or  of  training 
of  "powers"  has  fulfilled  the  end  of  education  for  the 
individual. 


INSTITUTIONAL  MODES  OF  EXPERIENCE      59 


II.    The  Family  and  the  Individual 

The  earliest  institution  to  be  developed  in  society  is 

the  family.    Farther  back  than  we  can  penetrate  into 

the  history  of  the  race  the  family  existed. 

Nature  of  the        jfc  nag  j^  varjous  forms  and  has  occupied 

positions  of  vastly  different  importance 
among  other  institutions  at  different  times.  But  after  all 
man,  woman,  and  child,  two  premises  and  their  conclu- 
sion, constituting  the  "practical  syllogism" — these  com- 
bine to  form  the  most  natural,  the  most  ancient,  and  the 
most  vital  of  all  the  social  units. 

Not  only  from  the  standpoint  of  society,  but  also  from 
the  standpoint  of  the  individual,  the  family  is  the  funda- 
Contributionof  mental  institution.  It  gives  to  the  child 
the  home  to  being.  At  first  the  home  forms  the  sole 
the  individual.  envu-Onment,  and  for  a  considerable  time 
thereafter  the  principal  environment  of  the  individual. 
It  protects  and  nourishes  him  during  the  most  plastic 
and  formative  period  of  his  life.  It  saves  him  from  eco- 
nomic pressure  during  a  long  period  of  dependence, 
guards  him  from  pitfalls,  and  supplies  a  congenial  atmos- 
phere for  his  development.  In  the  home,  the  child, 
through  imitation,  learns  a  language,  adopts  ethical  and 
religious  standards,  and  becomes  familiar  with  social 
forms  and  usages.  Here  he  learns  obedience,  has  his 
first  experience  in  social  co-operation,  forms  the  habit 
of  work,  develops  the  concept  of  economic  necessity,  and 
learns  to  earn  and  save.  Under  right  conditions  the 
home  constitutes  the  greatest  formative  influence  in  the 
education  of  the  individual.  The  life  of  the  home  comes 
to  color  the  life  in  all  the  other  institutions.  The  inter- 


60  SOCIAL  PRINCIPLES  OF  EDUCATION 

ests  and  activities  of  the  home  furnish  the  basis  for  the 
interests  and  activities  in  the  wider  life  of  society.  It 
therefore  behooves  society  to  see  that  the  home  fulfils 
its  function  not  alone  in  bringing  the  child  into  existence, 
but  also  in  carrying  out  its  full  share  of  his  education. 

The  fundamental  impulses  on  which  the  family  rests 
are  among  the  most  deeply  rooted  of  any  in  our  natures. 
Fundamental  These  have  long  served,  and  will  continue 
relations  in  the  to  serve,  to  bring  about  the  most  important 
home.  relations  in  the  home,  namely,  those  of 

husband  and  wife,  and  of  parent  and  child.  Economic 
necessity  also  adds  the  relations  of  provider  and  dis- 
burser.  These  relations  are  not,  in  the  broad  sense,  op- 
tional with  the  individual,  but  must  be  entered  into  and 
efficiently  fulfilled.  And  each  of  these  relations  makes  its 
own  peculiar  demands  upon  the  individual,  which  it  is 
the  function  of  education  to  prepare  him  to  meet.  Failure 
of  function  here  not  only  results  disastrously  for  the 
welfare  and  happiness  of  the  individual,  but  endangers 
all  other  social  institutions  as  well. 

The  home  may  be  said  to  rest  on  a  triple  basis:  (i)  the 
biological,  or  the  impulses  of  sex,  which  lead  to  mating; 
Threefold  (2)  ^e  parental  instinct  of  love  for  the 
basis  of  the  child,  which  prompts  to  the  care  and  nurt- 
home.  ure  Q£  ^^ren  through  the  long  period  of 

helplessness  and  plasticity  constituting  infancy;  and 
(3)  the  economic  advantage  obtained  through  the  divi- 
sion of  labor  and  responsibility  in  the  family, 
social  changes  The  Past  century  has  been  a  time  of  rad- 
affecting  the  ical  and  extensive  change  in  nearly  all  the 
home'  social  institutions.  The  face  of  the  earth 

has  almost  been  made  over  in  that  time.  The  old  in- 
dustrial and  social  lines  have  disappeared.  Society  has 


INSTITUTIONAL  MODES  OF  EXPERIENCE      61 

had  a  new  birth.  In  this  general  readjustment,  the  rela- 
tions and  functions  of  the  home  have  been  vastly  modi- 
fied. Its  structure  remains  the  same,  but  the  method  of 
its  activities  is  very  different.  These  changes  have  had 
far-reaching  consequences  both  for  the  home  itself  as  a  so- 
cial institution  and  for  the  school  as  an  institution  closely 
allied  with  the  home  in  the  education  of  the  children. 

Lying  at  the  basis  of  these  changes  in  the  home  are 
the  great  economic  changes  resulting  from  the  passing 
influence  of  over  to  ^ne  factory  system  in  our  industries, 
industrial  Following  the  invention  of  modern  machin- 

changes.  ^  ^^  ^  appiicatjon  of  steam  and  elec- 

tric power,  machine  labor  began  to  displace  hand  labor. 
It  was  found  more  profitable  to  set  up  a  group  of  ma- 
chines in  one  place  than  to  have  the  machines  working 
one  in  a  place,  and  the  modern  factory  came  into  being. 
Within  three  generations,  America  has  passed  completely 
from  the  system  of  domestic  manufacture  to  that  of  the 
factory,  making  one  of  the  most  sweeping  changes  ever 
effected  in  an  institution  in  so  short  a  time. 

Three  generations  ago  almost  every  article  used  in  the 
home  was  made  or  prepared  by  the  members  of  the  family 
at  the  home.  The  wool  for  the  home-spun 
industries!111  garments  was  raised,  clipped,  carded,  spun, 
dyed,  woven  into  cloth,  and  made  into 
clothing  in  the  home.  The  meat  was  raised,  slaughtered, 
and  cured  on  the  farm;  the  grain  was  sown,  harvested, 
threshed,  sometimes  ground  into  flour,  and  made  into 
bread  without  the  help  of  others  than  those  in  the  family; 
all  the  vegetables  and  fruit  were  home-grown,  and  the 
winter  supply  was  packed  away,  preserved  or  dried  in 
the  autumn  without  the  aid  of  factory-made  cans.  In  the 
workshop  with  its  motley  array  of  tools  was  fashioned 
most  of  the  furniture  for  the  home  and  the  machinery 


62  SOCIAL  PRINCIPLES  OF  EDUCATION 

for  the  farm.  The  family  life  of  this  day  was  very  full 
of  industry  and  activity.  Every  member  from  the  child 
to  the  aged  grandparent  had  a  share  in  the  household 
work  and  responsibilities. 

But  this  is  a  picture  of  the  past.  The  old-time  home 
with  its  multiplicity  of  industries,  its  social  seclusion, 
and  its  individual  responsibility  has  passed 
industries!  °  away  never  to  return.  It  is  no  one's  fault; 
it  could  not  be  helped.  The  demon  of 
enterprise  came  among  us  and  gave  us  factories,  and  we 
were  obliged  to  hand  our  industries  over  to  them.  Food 
is  now  ordered  by  telephone  and  comes  ready  for  the 
table;  clothing  is  made  in  the  shops  and  comes  to  the 
home  on  trial  or  approval;  the  pressure  of  an  electric 
button  lights  the  house,  and  the  steam  laundry  washes 
and  irons  the  clothes.  The  workshop  has  been  trans- 
formed into  a  garage,  and  the  vegetable  garden  into  a 
tennis  court.  Of  all  the  olden  home  industries,  prac- 
tically all  except  cooking  and  cleaning  are  gone.  And 
what  with  prepared  foods  and  vacuum  cleaners  these  bid 
fair  to  follow. 

TWO  great  Growing  out  of  these  economic  changes, 

losses  to  the       the  home  has  suffered  two  distinct  losses: 
(i)  the  loss  of  industrial  training  for  the 
children;  and  (2)  loss  of  companionship  between  parents 
and  children. 

Robbed  of  opportunities  for  industrial  training,  the 
child  lacks  one  of  the  most  vital  forms  of  experience.    It 
The  child's        nas  remained  for  modern  education  to  dis- 
loss  of  indus-      cover  the  close  relation  between  the  train- 
training.      jng  Q£  tjie  nan(j  an(j  ^e  Development  of  the 

mind.  The  child  is  essentially  creative  and  constructive 
in  his  impulses.  He  is  interested  more  in  things  than  in 
symbols;  he  cares  more  about  making  things  than  think- 


INSTITUTIONAL  MODES  OF  EXPERIENCE      63 

ing  about  them.  The  developing  self  demands  expres- 
sion even  more  than  impression.  The  body  as  well  as  the 
mind  craves  exercise.  Nor  does  the  exercise  of  mere  play, 
necessary  as  play  is,  fully  suffice.  For  the  individual 
must  learn  to  work;  his  powers  must  be  employed  to 
a  purpose;  symbolizing,  theorizing,  and  dreaming  fail 
finally  to  satisfy  the  individual,  as  they  fail  of  social 
accomplishment;  his  dreams  must  lead  to  deeds,  his 
play  must  eventuate  in  work.  Life  must  finally  come 
to  find  its  chief  joy  and  satisfaction  in  labor. 

The  transference  of  industrial  training  from  the  home 

to  the  school  is  now  in  the  process  of  accomplishment. 

Industrial  studies  are  becoming  an  integral 

Industrial 

training  trans-  part  of  almost  every  school  programme, 
f erred  to  the  gu^  no  matter  how  efficient  the  school  may 

school.  .  .  f-, 

become  in  teaching  the  technique  of  the 
handicrafts,  it  can  never  wholly  make  up  to  the  child  for 
their  loss  from  the  home.  For  in  the  industries  of  the 
home  the  incentives  were  very  real,  the  interests  very 
immediate,  and  the  necessities  very  concrete.  The  aims 
possessed  a  touch  of  reality  which  must  in  some  degree 
be  lacking  in  the  most  perfect  of  school  exercises.  But 
it  cannot  be  helped.  The  greater  part  of  the  industries 
of  the  home  are  gone  past  any  possibility  of  recall,  and  it 
only  remains  to  make  up  to  tie  child  as  best  can  be  done 
in  other  particulars  for  this  loss. 

Probably  the  greatest  loss  which  the  home  has  suffered 
through  the  changes  it  has  been  undergoing  is  the  loss 

of  comradeship  and  close  personal  touch 

The  child's  ,  .,  i 

loss  of "  com-  between  parents  and  children.  In  the  old- 
panionship"  ^me  home  the  boy  was  the  constant  co- 

with  parents.  *,  . 

worker  and  companion  of  his  father,  whose 
words  of  wisdom  and  views  of  life  unconsciously  built 


64  SOCIAL  PRINCIPLES  OF  EDUCATION 

themselves  into  the  ideals  and  practice  of  the  son.  Every 
girl  was  the  helper  and  comrade  of  her  mother,  whose 
life  became  the  daughter's  standard  of  womanliness. 
The  very  isolation  of  the  family  made  it  dependent  on 
its  own  resources  for  social  entertainment  and  diversion. 
The  long  winter  evenings  were  spent  in  telling  stories, 
recounting  traditions,  or  reading  books  of  romance  or 
adventure.  Games  were  played,  apples  roasted,  nuts 
cracked,  and  a  jolly  time  was  had  around  the  family 
fireplace.  It  is  hard  to  measure  the  social  value  of  hours 
like  these  spent  in  the  family  circle. 

But  this  picture,  like  that  of  the  industrial  activities 
of  the  olden  home,  belongs  to  the  past.  Specialization 
The  father  but  °^  lab°r  has  taken  the  father  from  the 
little  time  at  home  and  sent  him  to  the  factory  or  the 

me<  mill.  And,  even  if  he  is  a  farmer,  modern 

machinery  is  such  that  the  work  of  father  and  son  is,  for 
the  most  part,  separate,  and  they  hardly  meet  in  the 
fields.  It  comes  about,  therefore,  that  many  fathers  of 
the  present  day  see  more  of  the  office  boy  or  the  clerks 
they  employ  than  of  their  own  son.  In  many  homes  the 
father  is  the  chief  financial  agent  for  the  family,  but  aside 
from  this  enters  comparatively  little  into  their  councils. 
It  is  also  true  that  the  mother  and  daughter  work  to- 
gether less  in  the  household  duties  than  formerly,  and 
not  a  few  mothers  know  more  of  the  daily  life  and  thought 
of  the  house-maid  than  of  the  daughter. 

To  these  conditions,  growing  out  of  the  change  in  the 
economic  life  of  the  home,  must  be  added  other  condi- 
The  school  ^ons  o*  similar  trend  coming  from  the  in- 
keeps  children  creasing  demands  of  school  and  social  life 
upon  the  time  of  the  children.  What  with 
the  requirements  of  the  regular  school  day,  the  home 


INSTITUTIONAL  MODES  OF  EXPERIENCE      65 

lessons,  the  athletic  events,  the  social  functions,  and  the 
free  and  almost  unrestricted  associations  of  young  people 
with  each  other,  there  is  very  little  time  left  for  family 
life  together.  And,  even  if  the  children  themselves  had 
the  time  for  the  family  social  hour,  the  social  and  the 
club  engagements  of  the  parents  would  greatly  restrict 
the  opportunity  for  family  association. 

The  greatest  divorce  evil  that  threatens  the  American 
home  is  not  the  legal  separation  of  husband  and  wife, 
but  the  separation  of  parents  and  children 
of  divorced.  under  the  new  conditions  which  are  obtain- 
ing. It  is  not  that  parents  love  their  chil- 
dren less  or  that  children  are  any  less  open-hearted  and 
responsive  than  they  were.  It  is  only  that  the  home  has 
been  changing,  and  that  the  tender  and  close  relations 
of  the  home  have  not  stood  the  strain  of  changing  con- 
ditions. There  is  a  grave  danger  that  the  home  shall 
become  chiefly  a  biological  and  economic  centre — a  place 
where  children  are  born  and  supplied  with  food,  clothing, 
and  shelter,  but  with  that  greatest  of  all  educative  factors 
left  out — the  companionship  and  comradeship  of  parent 
and  child. 

The  old  home  with  its  isolation  from  neighbors,  its 
busy  industries,  and  its  broad  fireplace  is  gone.  Society 
must  seek  new  solutions  for  the  problems 
°^  ^e  new  home.  For  the  home  as  a  true 
home  for  children  must  be  saved;  nothing 
can  take  its  place.  We  must  adjust  ourselves  to  the 
changed  conditions.  It  is  not  enough  that  the  children 
be  well  housed,  clothed,  and  fed.  They  are  now  well 
read.  The  school  teaches  them  something  of  music  and 
art.  They  are  acquainted  with  a  bewildering  complexity 
of  plays  and  games.  They  are  learning  manual  training, 


66  SOCIAL  PRINCIPLES  OF  EDUCATION 

scientific  agriculture,  and  the  industrial  arts.  They  are 
entering  into  all  these  things  with  heart,  hand,  and 
brain.  The  home  must  recognize  that  the  boys  and  girls 
of  to-day  live  a  much  broader  life  and  have  a  far  wider 
range  of  interests  than  did  their  parents  and  grandparents, 
and  provide  for  these  new  activities.  Nor  can  all  these 
things  be  handed  over  to  the  children  without  the  parents 
taking  a  part.  Games,  amusements,  and  books  shared 
with  the  parents  have  a  double  significance  for  the  child. 
And,  above  all,  it  is  only  by  entering  into  the  active  in- 
terests and  life  of  the  children  that  parents  can  obtain 
a  sympathetic  understanding  of  them,  and  so  win  their 
confidence  and  comradeship. 

Parents  also  need  a  more  specialized  knowledge  of  their 
children.  Scientific  knowledge  and  technique  as  applied 
to  the  industries,  arts,  business,  and  agri- 
upCon parents*  culture  have  increased  marvellously  in  re- 
cent years.  But  no  corresponding  advance 
has  been  made  on  the  part  of  parents  in  the  knowledge 
of  children  and  the  technique  of  rearing  them.  Although 
there  is  an  abundance  of  scientific  material  easily  avail- 
able relating  both  to  the  physical  and  the  mental  life  of 
the  child,  most  parents  are  profoundly  ignorant  of  both. 
Is  it  not  worth  while  for  parents  to  know  something  of  the 
nature  and  unfoldment  of  the  child's  mind?  Is  not  the 
religious  nature  of  the  child  a  vital  and  worthy  object 
of  study?  Is  not  the  growth,  nutrition,  and  care  of  the 
child's  body  a  scientific  problem  which  will  give  the  key 
to  the  more  successful  rearing  of  children?  Would  it  not 
be  worth  while  for  the  parents  to  be  able  to  reveal  to  the 
children  in  an  accurate,  delicate,  and  scientific  way  the 
secrets  of  their  physical  being,  rather  than  to  allow  these 
things  to  be  learned  from  chance  information  at  the 


INSTITUTIONAL  MODES  OF  EXPERIENCE      67 

school  or  on  the  street?  Will  it  not  yield  as  large  returns 
to  apply  scientific  method  to  the  rearing  of  children  as 
to  the  management  of  a  factory  or  the  running  of  a 
business? 

These  requirements  of  the  home  all  inhere  in  the  social 
process.  The  demands  of  the  home  are  the  demands  of 
Educational  society.  To  function  as  a  member  of  so- 
aim  must  in-  ciety,  the  individual  must  be  able  to  meet 

elude  the  home.    .1        -i  i-      ,•  ,•  t  • 

the  obligations  resting  upon  him  as  a  mem- 
ber of  a  home.  The  educational  aim  must,  therefore,  not 
fail  to  include  the  fitting  of  the  individual  for  this  the  most 
important  of  all  his  social  functions,  that  of  sustaining  in 
a  worthy  home  the  relations  involved  in  the  family. 

III.    The  Community  as  an  Educative  Factor 

When  the  individual  first  extends  his  activities  beyond 

those  of  the  home,  he  finds  himself  participating  in  the 

,  life  of  the  community.     The  community 

The  commu-  .  J  ,     J 

nity  extends  the  cannot  strictly  be  called  an  institution, 
child's  social  since  it  lacks  definite  organization  and  does 

environment.  * 

not  undertake  a  specific  programme  of  char- 
acteristic activities.  Yet  the  community  forms  so  im- 
portant a  factor  in  the  life  of  the  individual,  particularly 
during  his  earliest  years,  that  it  deserves  some  consider- 
ation in  our  discussion.  It  is  the  community  that  offers 
an  opportunity  for  a  wider  and  more  generalized  experi- 
ence than  is  possible  in  the  home.  Here  the  activities  are 
less  specialized,  and  hence  less  closely  organized.  Paren- 
tal authority  and  care  are  larking,  and  the  child  is 
thrown  more  on  his  own  resources  for  control  and  the 
conservation  of  his  personal  interests.  The  boundary 
lines  of  the  community  are  not  clearly  drawn  as  they 


68  SOCIAL  PRINCIPLES  OF  EDUCATION 

are  in  the  home,  and  thus  the  community  leads  directly 
out  into  the  wider  social  life  which  in  the  end  encompasses 
the  race. 

The  community  greatly  extends  the  social  relation- 
ships of  the  individual.  It  is  here  that  he  learns  to  know 
T  f  r  la  friend)  neighbor,  comrade,  companion,  play- 
fellow,  chum.  And  these  relationships  afford 
opportunities  for  types  of  experience  which 
rapidly  develop  and  discipline  the  social 
consciousness,  preparing  it  for  the  still  wider  touch  with 
men  in  all  possible  social  relations.  The  community  also 
gives  rise  to  various  organizations,  such  as  clubs  and  so- 
cieties of  many  different  kinds,  which  come  finally  to  ab- 
sorb not  a  little  of  the  individual's  interest,  and  no  small 
proportion  of  his  time  and  activities.  These  are  coming 
to  play  an  increasingly  larger  part  in  the  child's  experi- 
ence, and  their  nature  and  number  constitute  one  of  the 
serious  educational  problems  of  the  day. 

The  environment  supplied  by  the  community,  coming 
to  the  individual  during  the  very  plastic  period  of  his 
importance  of  ^e>  an(^  remaining  for  many  the  most  im- 
community  portant  social  medium  after  the  home,  plays 
environment  an  jujpQj-^jjt  r£ie  m  education.  The  stream 

of  suggestions  pouring  in  upon  the  child  from  the  ma- 
terial part  of  his  surroundings,  the  aesthetic  values  re- 
ceived from  lake,  river,  and  beautiful  parks  or  ugly  tene- 
ments, from  rolling  prairies  or  dirty  alleys,  are  all  built 
faithfully  into  the  life  structure.  Likewise  the  ethical 
and  religious  standards,  first  by  suggestion  and  uncon- 
scious imitation,  and  later  by  conscious  adjustment  to 
their  requirements,  have  an  important  formative  influ- 
ence. Saloons,  gambling  halls,  and  dens  of  vice  supply 
no  worthy  stimuli  for  the  youth,  and,  even  if  not  fre- 


INSTITUTIONAL  MODES  OF  EXPERIENCE      69 

quented,  have  a  constant  tendency  by  their  very  presence 
in  the  community  to  dull  the  moral  sense.  The  theatre, 
possessing  great  educative  possibilities,  is,  on  the  whole, 
not  an  elevating  influence  in  many  communities.  The 
nickel  theatre,  which  might  be  made  an  important  agent 
in  education,  is  often  of  questionable  value  as  an  amuse- 
ment, and  at  its  worst  is  a  positive  menace  to  the  morals 
of  the  community. 

The  modern  tendency  toward  municipalization  is  tend- 
ing to  break  down  the  older  type  of  community  life. 
The  city  hos-  Twenty  families,  living  together  in  an  apart- 
tue  to  com-  ment  house  which  occupies  a  smaller  area 
mumty  spirit.  ^^  ^^  j-gqujj.^  for  a  tennis-court,  using 

common  hallways  and  elevators,  and  passing  each  other 
at.  close  range  daily,  and  yet  without  knowing  each 
other's  names  or  employments  or  extending  even  the 
most  formal  greetings — this  comes  far  short  of  being  a 
community  or  a  neighborhood.  Nor  is  the  situation 
helped  when  this  building  is  flanked  by  literal  square 
miles  of  other  similar  buildings  equally  crowded  with 
people  who  know  as  little  of  each  other.  Without  doubt 
there  is  a  distinct  loss  in  this  mode  of  living  which  can 
be  compensated  for  only  in  part  by  the  advantages 
afforded  in  other  lines  by  the  modern  city.  Neighbor- 
hood clubs,  social  settlements,  and  various  other  clubs 
and  organizations  have  been  devised  to  supply  the  loss 
suffered  by  the  passing  of  the  community  in  cities.  The 
problem  will  perhaps  receive  its  best  solution  finally 
through  the  medium  of  the  public  school,  which  is  com- 
ing to  be  looked  upon  as  the  neighborhood  centre  and 
meeting  place  in  many  of  the  larger  American  cities. 

Society  has  not  yet  awakened  to  the  importance  of 
the  community  as  a  factor  in  education.  With  the  les- 


70  SOCIAL  PRINCIPLES  OF  EDUCATION 

sening  of  the  influence  of  the  home  in  the  life  of  the 
child,  there  has  been,  except  in  the  larger  cities,  a  cor- 
The  commu-  responding  increase  in  the  influence  of  the 
nity  as  a  factor  community.  Children  hardly  yet  entered 
m  education.  UpOn  thejr  'teens  participate  far  more  in  the 
community  life  than  was  done  by  their  grandparents 
when  full  grown.  And  it  is  a  grave  question  whether, 
along  with  this  increase  of  influence,  the  community  has 
not  at  the  same  time  become  on  the  whole  less  safe  and 
serviceable  as  an  educative  factor. 

If  the  community  is  to  do  its  part  in  the  education  of 
its  children,  it  has  two  problems  yet  to  solve.  First, 
Demands  on  ^  must  provide  an  environment  whose 
the  commu-  influences  are  pure  and  wholesome.  The 
stream  of  suggestions  daily  pouring  in  upon 
the  child  must  be  free  from  taint;  they  must  prompt  to 
high  ideals  and  worthy  living.  Second,  the  community 
must  recognize  and  provide  for  the  social  impulses  of 
growth.  It  is  not  enough  to  ring  a  curfew  bell  and  forbid 
the  boys  to  join  a  gang  and  the  girls  to  be  on  the  streets 
unattended.  Negations  never  remove  impulses,  but  at 
best  only  slightly  deflect  their  course.  Further,  most  of 
the  impulses  leading  to  irregularities  of  youthful  behavior 
are  fundamental  to  development,  and  only  need  suitable 
modes  of  expression  to  become  a  serviceable  factor  in 
education.  Let  the  community,  therefore,  open  a  library 
well  supplied  with  books  and  magazines  adapted  to 
young  people;  let  it  provide  a  well-equipped  gymnasium; 
let  it  maintain  a  room  where  a  great  variety  of  suitable 
games  may  be  played;  let  it  see  that  church,  or  school, 
or  municipal  building  opens  its  doors  to  the  young  peo- 
ple for  an  occasional  social  function ;  let  it  encourage  the 
organization  of  clubs  and  societies  for  its  boys  and  girls. 


INSTITUTIONAL  MODES  OF  EXPERIENCE      71 

For,  in  proper  measure,  these  things  all  belong  to  youth 
and  its  education.  Expression,  rather  than  suppression, 
is  the  law  of  growth. 


IV.    The  Church  as  a  Social  Institution 

The  church  is  the  organized  religious  activity  of  so- 
ciety.   As  an  institution  it  expresses  the  sum  of  religious 
culture,  man's  ideal  of  religious  experience 

Social  nature  '  .  . to.  *T 

of  religion          and  the  technique  of  religion.     Ihe  con- 
and  the  cepj-  of  religion  is  essentially  a  social  con- 

cept. The  idea  of  the  fatherhood  of  God 
involves  the  ideal  of  the  brotherhood  of  man.  The 
religious  impulse  is  pre-eminently  an  impulse  to  service. 
The  developing  concept  of  God  has  shown  him  to  be  no 
dread  being  to  be  propitiated  that  he  may  not  visit  man 
with  dire  calamity,  no  partial  deity  crowning  one  peo- 
ple with  the  fruits  of  his  good  pleasure  and  visiting 
another  with  the  accumulation  of  his  anger,  nor  a  God 
of  vanity  whose  pleasure  is  to  be  satisfied  with  man's 
praise  and  adulation  as  a  measure  of  his  religious  devel- 
opment and  experience.  It  has  shown  him  to  be  rather 
a  God  of  experience,  a  positive  force  at  work  in  the  world 
and  in  the  lives  of  men  prompting  them  to  higher  ideals 
and  nobler  living,  a  presence  that  manifests  itself  most 
clearly  and  efficiently  hi  connection  with  the  actual  run 
of  experience  as  man  participates  in  the  world's  work. 

This  wider  concept  of   God  has  made 

The  social  .  *. 

concept  gives      religion  a  very  practical  matter;  it  trans- 
reality  to  forms  it  into  a  manner  of  living,  thereby 

religion.  .  ,    .  ... 

taking  it  out  of  the  realm  of  the  unreal,  or 
semi-unreal,  in  which  all  things  not  reduced  to  experi- 
ence exist.  The  church  thus  becomes  an  important  social 


72          SOCIAL  PRINCIPLES  OF  EDUCATION 

institution,  a  means  of  realizing  the  higher  impulses  and 
most  fruitful  experiences  of  the  individual,  and  of  educa- 
ting to  the  noblest  social  ideals  and  practice.  It  is  the 
instrument  of  righteousness,  which  must  ultimately  be- 
come the  ideal  of  every  progressive  society. 

The  scope  of  the  social  programme  of  the  church  is  at 
present  the  subject  of  much  discussion  and  not  a  little 
The  social  difference  of  opinion.  The  influence  of  re- 
programme  ligion  permeates  all  experience,  touching 
of  the  church.  ^&  ^  every  point.  Yet  the  church  as  an 
institution  cannot  extend  its  activities  so  far  as  to  par- 
ticipate in  the  functions  of  all  the  other  institutions.  The 
purpose  of  the  church  is  rather  to  cultivate  in  its  members 
the  religious  spirit  and  ideal,  the  ideal  of  righteousness 
as  expressed  in  personal  life  and  social  service.  The 
nature  of  neither  the  church's  aim,  therefore,  nor  its 
organization  permits  it  to  develop  a  technique  in  many 
lines  of  social  activity.  But,  neither  must  the  church 
allow  theory  to  be  separated  from  practice,  else  theology 
supplants  piety  and  the  church  loses  its  hold  on  society 
through  losing  contact  with  social  interests  and  needs. 
The  essence,  or  at  least  the  outcome,  of  religion  is  ex- 
pressed in  service,  and  the  church  must  inculcate  this 
ideal  in  practice  as  well  as  in  precept;  it  must  render 
social  service  as  well  as  preach  it. 

It  would  seem,  on  the  one  hand,  that  the  church  could 
best  accomplish  its  mission  by  impressing  the  religious 
The  primary  spirit  and  method  upon  the  social  organiza- 
functionof  tions  already  at  hand.  For  example,  the 
the  church.  church  should  not  expend  its  energies  in 
duplicating  schools  supported  by  the  state;  but  should 
only  enter  this  field  when  it  is  evident  that  there  is  an 
educational  need  which  is  not  being  met  by  existent  insti- 


INSTITUTIONAL  MODES  OF  EXPERIENCE      73 

tutions.  The  church  should  not  compete  with  philan- 
thropic organizations  under  municipal  or  independent 
control,  but  co-operate  with  them.  But,  on  the  other 
hand,  an  earnest  aggressive  church  will  rind  many  points 
of  contact  with  society  that  have  not  been  occupied  by 
any  other  form  of  social  activity.  The  needs  of  man  are 
many  sided;  wretchedness,  ignorance,  and  poverty  are 
all  too  common;  vice  stalks  unchallenged  in  many  places; 
the  necessity  for  innocent  recreation  and  amusement  is 
immediate  and  pressing.  The  various  social  institutions, 
in  parcelling  out  among  themselves  the  activities  covering 
the  social  demands,  have  not  occupied  the  whole  terri- 
tory; they  have  left  vacant  areas  here  and  there. 

It  is  in  these  unoccupied  places  that  the  church  finds 

its  opportunity  for  organized  social  service.     Nor  will 

,     .     .         this  social  service  of  the  church  be  the  same 

The  church  . 

to  compie-  m  all  communities.  For  it  must  apply  its 
compete*  *°  energies  at  the  point  of  greatest  need,  and 
not  at  the  point  of  competition.  In  one 
place  the  church  may  need  to  organize  philanthropies; 
in  another,  to  institute  and  administer  playgrounds;  in 
another,  to  found  schools;  in  another,  to  fight  graft  and 
vice;  and  in  still  others,  only  to  provide  the  regular  re- 
ligious programme  of  preaching,  prayer  meetings,  and 
Sunday-schools. 

It  is  in  the  congested  regions  of  great  cities,  where 
the  mental  and  the  social  horizon  are  necessarily  nar- 
Theinstitu-  row5  wnei>e  material  wants  are  pressing; 
tionai  church  where  opportunities  for  recreation  and  self- 
city  slum.  improvement  are  sadly  lacking,  that  the  in- 
stitutional church  finds  its  warmest  welcome  and  its  great- 
est opportunity.  Its  hospitals,  its  playgrounds,  libraries, 
and  classes  for  instruction  come  to  stand  for  organized 


74  SOCIAL  PRINCIPLES  OF  EDUCATION 

Christian  kindness.  In  ministering  to  the  physical  and 
social  needs  of  its  people,  as  well  as  to  their  spiritual 
needs,  the  church  secures  a  correspondingly  stronger  hold 
on  their  interest  and  affection,  and  thereby  secures  their 
loyalty  and  support  in  return  for  its  services.  For  the 
community  is  appealed  to  in  a  new  and  more  power- 
ful way  when  it  feels  that  the  church  is  concerned  in  the 
welfare  of  the  whole  man,  and  not  just  a  part;  and  that 
the  here  as  well  as  the  hereafter  forms  a  part  of  the  defi- 
nite programme  of  the  church. 

The  most  ambitious  social  programme  so  far  under- 
taken by  the  church  has  been  in  the  line  of  general  edu- 
cation. Almost  from  the  first,  the  Christian 
lad  education.  cnurcn  nas  conceived  the  education  of  its 
adherents  as  one  of  its  chief  functions. 
Long  before  the  state  had  undertaken  any  comprehensive 
scheme  of  universal  education,  the  church  had  provided 
schools,  not  alone  for  its  members,  but  for  all  who  chose 
to  avail  themselves  of  the  instruction.  In  America,  the 
church  has  played  a  far  less  important  part  in  education 
than  in  England.  Yet,  here,  the  Catholic  Church,  which 
has  but  few  higher  institutions,  supports  and  administers 
thousands  of  elementary  schools.  The  Protestant  Church, 
which  has  given  its  attention  chiefly  to  higher  education, 
has  organized,  and  in  some  degree  controls  and  supports, 
a  large  proportion  of  the  higher  institutions  of  the 
country.  In  England,  the  church  has  had  almost  full 
control  of  practically  all  elementary  education  up  to  about 
a  generation  ago.  Since  that  time,  however,  the  state  has 
been  supplanting  the  church  through  extending  its  control 
and  support  to  include  elementary  education. 

It  is  inevitable  that,  as  the  concept  of  universal  edu- 
cation comes  to  dominate  the  social  mind,  the  state  shall 


INSTITUTIONAL  MODES  OF  EXPERIENCE      75 

assume  education  as  one  of  its  principal  functions.  The 
task  is  too  large  for  the  church,  both  on  the  adminis- 
The  state  the  trative  and  the  financial  side.  Further,  the 
chief  support  existence  of  many  sects  within  the  church, 


e  ucaon.       ^^   jeajous   of   fa   own 

methods,  renders  it  impossible  for  the  church  to  admin- 
ister a  system  of  universal  education.  The  state  now 
supplies  adequate  educational  facilities  for  the  elemen- 
tary and  secondary  instruction  of  its  young  in  nearly 
every  community.  It  may  well  be  questioned,  there- 
fore, whether  it  is  necessary  or  wise  for  the  church  to 
compete  with  the  state  in  this  field  of  education. 

The  state  has  not  as  yet  supplied  sufficient  facilities 
for  higher  education  for  all  who  desire  it.  The  church 
The  church  can  enter  this  field  without  competing  with 
and  higher  the  state  in  the  same  degree  as  when  at- 
tempting to  give  elementary  education. 
The  church  has  also  up  to  this  time  felt  the  need  of  its 
own  higher  institutions  for  the  training  of  its  leadership. 
It  has  demanded  that  its  leaders  have  an  opportunity  for 
receiving  their  higher  education  in  schools  dominated  by 
Christian  ideals  and  supplying  a  religious  environment. 
Not  willing  to  trust  this  to  the  schools  of  the  state,  the 
church  has  freely  spent  of  its  energy  and  its  treasure  in 
establishing  and  maintaining  colleges  and  universities. 
The  control  of  the  church  over  these  schools,  however, 
has  gradually  been  loosening,  and  in  many  instances  the 
relation  between  church  and  college  is  now  purely  nom- 
inal, and  in  other  instances  has  been  wholly  dissolved. 
Unless  the  church  can  succeed  in  impressing  religious 
standards  and  ideals  upon  the  higher  institutions  which 
it  no  longer  controls,  and  can  thereby  supply  an  environ- 
ment favorable  to  the  development  of  the  Christian 


76  SOCIAL  PRINCIPLES  OF  EDUCATION 

spirit  in  such  schools,  its  withdrawal  from  the  field  of 
higher  education  cannot  but  prove  disastrous  for  the 
leadership  of  the  church. 

Whatever  may  be  the  future  of  the  church's  activity 
in  the  field  of  general  education,  however,  it  is  clear  that 

it  must  be  chiefly  responsible  for  religious 
chiefly"™  education,  and  must  not  fail  in  its  task.  It 
responsible  for  is  impossible  in  America,  where  there  is  such 
education.  a  diversity  of  faiths  and  creeds,  to  teach 

religion  in  the  public  schools.  Coupled 
with  this  is  the  deplorable  fact  that  the  home  is  no  longer 
concerning  itself  with  religious  education  of  children  in 
the  same  degree  as  in  former  times.  The  result,  then, 
must  be  that  of  throwing  a  constantly  increasing  burden 
on  the  church  in  providing  for  the  religious  education  of 
its  youth. 

It  is  probably  fair  to  say  that  at  the  present  time  the 
church  is  not  adequately  meeting  its  responsibility  at 

this  point.    The  result  is  that  religious  edu- 

The  church  .  ^    .  '    . 

not  meeting  cation  is  on  the  decline.  Unquestionably 
its  responsi-  there  is  a  far  less  general  knowledge  of  the 
Bible  now  than  there  was  fifty  or  one  hun- 
dred years  ago.  Also,  the  children  are  attending  church, 
and  probably  Sunday-school,  in  considerably  smaller 
proportion.  The  church  has  not  yet  fully  awakened  to 
the  fact  that  the  religious  education  of  its  children,  and 
not  preaching  to  adults,  is  its  most  important  function. 
This  is  seen  in  the  fact  that  the  church  is  organized  and 
conducted  chiefly  for  adults,  and  not  for  children.  And 
yet,  childhood  and  youth  certainly  supply  the  most  fruit- 
ful soil  for  religious  nurture  and  instruction. 

The  Sunday-school  cannot  be  expected  to  show  the 
same  efficiency  in  organization  and  method  as  the  public 


INSTITUTIONAL  MODES  OF  EXPERIENCE      77 

school.  It  meets  too  infrequently,  and  its  officers  and 
teachers  are  largely  untrained  for  their  work,  and  hence 
The  limita-  inefficient.  But,  even  making  allowance  for 
tions  of  the  this  handicap,  the  church  has  been  slow  in 
un  ay-sc  oo .  mafcjng  use  of  ^  educational  principles 
tested,  proved,  and  applied  in  the  public  schools  of  the 
day.  The  pedagogy  of  the  Sunday-school  is  from  fifty 
to  one  hundred  years  behind  that  of  the  public  schools. 
Organization,  curriculum,  and  method  are  all  archaic. 
Encouraging  signs  are  beginning  to  appear,  however,  in 
the  movement  recently  initiated  in  several  of  the  denom- 
inations looking  toward  a  graded  curriculum,  better  or- 
ganization of  the  school,  and  normal  classes  for  the  train- 
ing of  the  teachers.  One  further  step  yet  remains  in 
the  preparation  of  the  ministry  for  the  educational  work 
of  the  church:  this  is  that  they  shall  be  as  well  trained 
in  the  principles  of  practical  sociology  and  the  art  of  edu- 
cation and  teaching  as  they  are  in  the  Bible  and  theology. 
Institutions,  like  nations,  have  their  crucial  times. 
The  church  of  the  present  is  rightly  concerned  over  the 
The  church  limitations  of  its  influence.  Only  a  corn- 
confronting  paratively  small  proportion  of  the  people 
of  any  community  are  church-goers,  and 
this  proportion  seems  to  be  decreasing.  Thousands  of 
those  living  in  the  larger  cities  never  se.e  the  interior  of  a 
church  building,  and  the  same  is  true  of  the  rural  com- 
munities. In  many  of  the  crowded  industrial  districts 
of  cities,  where  people  live  in  swarms,  the  churches  find 
it  difficult  to  eke  out  an  existence,  and  many  of  them  have 
to  depend  for  support  on  parent  churches  situated  in 
more  favored  surroundings.  The  marvellous  period  of 
industrial  progress  through  which  America  has  been  pass- 
ing for  almost  a  century  has  had  a  tendency  to  culti- 


78  SOCIAL  PRINCIPLES  OF  EDUCATION 

vate  a  materialistic  attitude  of  mind.  The  "goods"  of 
life  have  come  to  be  measured  largely  in  goods.  Ethical 
standards  in  business  and  politics  have  not  always  stood 
the  strain.  Religious  zeal  has  had  a  tendency  to  wane, 
and  the  church  does  not  exert  the  relative  influence  and 
possess  the  importance  of  a  generation  or  two  ago. 

Yet  man  is,  after  all,  fundamentally  religious.  He  may 
temporarily  have  lost  perspective  in  measuring  values. 
Theoppor-  But  there  is  evidence  of  the  rise  of  new 
tunityofthe  ideals  and  standards;  the  social  conscience 
is  awakening,  and  other  values  than  money 
are  exerting  their  appeal.  In  this  reconstruction  the 
church  is  facing  a  great  responsibility  and  opportunity. 
If  it  proves  equal  to  its  opportunity,  its  standards  and 
ideals  will  dominate  in  the  leadership  of  the  great  social 
movements  now  getting  under  way;  if  it  shall  fail  to 
measure  up  to  its  responsibility,  it  will  not  only  have 
missed  its  opportunity,  but  society  will  be  immeasurably 
the  loser  through  lacking  the  inspiration  and  steadying 
power  of  the  religious  impulse  inculcated  by  the  church. 
For  the  ethical  standards  of  the  church  are  the  only  ones 
which  render  life  and  property  safe.  Its  morals  are  the 
protection  of  the  home.  Its  ideals  and  practices  give  tone 
to  the  entire  social  order.  Efficient  social  participation 
requires  of  the  individual  that  he  shall  function  as  an 
actual  member  of  the  church,  giving  support  to  its  enter- 
prises and  serving  worthily  as  its  representative. 

The  educational  aim  must  therefore  in- 

The  educa-  ..... 

tionai  aim  elude  the  fitting  of  the  individual  into  the 
must  include  activities  of  the  church.  This  does  not  mean 

the  church.  . 

that  particular  faiths  or  creeds  are  to  be 
taught  in  the  schools.  On  the  contrary,  this  can  be  done 
only  in  the  church  and  the  home.  The  school  can, 


INSTITUTIONAL  MODES  OF  EXPERIENCE      79 

however,  through  its  instruction  and  its  curriculum,  lay 
broad  and  deep  the  foundations  of  reverence  for  the 
Creator  of  the  universe  and  the  laws  that  control  it.  The 
social  concept  can  be  developed  and  the  ethical  conscious- 
ness quickened.  The  moral  impulses  can  be  cultivated 
and  the  sense  of  personal  responsibility  enhanced.  The 
school  can  accomplish  these  things  even  with  the  limi- 
tations imposed  upon  it  as  to  teaching  religion.  And 
these  things  constitute,  after  all,  no  small  part  of  the  con- 
tent of  religion. 

V.     The  State  and  the  Educational  Aim 

The  state  is  the  most  comprehensive  of  all  the  social 

institutions.    In  one  sense  it  may  be  said  to  include  all 

the  others,  since  the  state  provides  for  their 

The  state  .'  , 

includes  the  organization  through  its  constitution  and 
other  institu-  jaws  an(j  protects  them  in  the  exercise  of 

tions. 

their  functions.  In  the  state  the  whole  of 
society  joins  hands,  making  common  cause  and  seeking 
a  common  welfare.  The  state  represents,  therefore,  the 
activities  of  society  as  an  organic  whole,  as  against  such 
smaller  units  as  the  family,  the  church,  or  the  commu- 
nity. In  the  state  all  the  narrow  and  intensive  loyalty  of 
the  smaller  social  units  is  supplanted  by  the  broader  and 
more  extensive  devotion  to  the  welfare  and  progress  of 
the  whole.  In  the  activities  of  the  state  the  social  hori- 
zon of  the  individual  is  wonderfully  broadened.  Service 
must  be  rendered  and  sacrifices  made,  not  for  those  of 
his  own  family,  community,  or  cult,  but  for  people  whom 
he  has  never  seen  and  does  not  know.  The  social  bond 
comes  to  have  a  new  meaning,  and  the  term  common  good 
comes  to  include  every  class  and  condition  of  society. 


80  SOCIAL  PRINCIPLES  OF  EDUCATION 

Co-operative  activities  are  undertaken,  not  for  private 
profit,  but  for  public  welfare;  rules  of  justice  are  estab- 
lished and  conditions  of  equal  opportunity  set  up  for  all 
alike. 

The  state  has  existed  in  many  different  political  forms, 
running  the  whole  gamut  from  the  most  absolute  of  mon- 
Fundamentai  archies  to  the  freest  of  democracies.  Un- 
prfncipiesof  doubtedly  many  different  forms  will  con- 
ite>  tinue  to  exist,  but  whatever  the  form,  the 

foundation  principles  of  justice  and  equal  opportunity 
must  obtain  if  the  political  organization  is  to  be  perma- 
nent and  if  society  is  to  progress.  The  pages  of  history  are 
filled  with  the  tragic  records  of  nations  that  have  denied 
their  citizens  one  or  both  of  these  fundamental  rights, 
and  themselves  perished  through  their  short-sightedness; 
and  modern  Russia  seems  unable  to  read  the  lesson  of 
the  past  and  is  piling  up  for  herself  a  heavy  account 
against  a  sure  day  of  reckoning. 

The  activities  of  the  state  may  be  divided  into  two 
broad  classes  which  may  roughly  be  described  as  posi- 
TWO  types  of  ^ve  an<^  negative.  The  negative  function 
functions  of  involves  the  restraint  of  the  anti-social  and 
state.  ^  prosecution  Of  unavoidable  wars.  While 

these  functions  are  purely  negative  in  the  sense  that  they 
only  remove  obstacles  to  progress  instead  of  furthering 
actual  progress,  yet  they  are  absolutely  necessary  and 
vital  to  the  very  existence  of  society.  For  there  is  a 
sufficient  residuum  of  selfishness  and  evil  lurking  in  hu- 
man nature  that  its  expression  must  be  restrained  and 
discouraged;  hence,  our  restrictive  laws  and  system  of 
police,  our  courts,  and  our  jails.  Let  this  function  of 
the  state  fail,  and  life,  property,  and  virtue  are  no  longer 
safe,  every  other  institution  totters,  and  the  state  itself 


INSTITUTIONAL  MODES  OF  EXPERIENCE      81 

cannot  long  exist.  Wars  are  becoming  more  rare;  they 
should  and  probably  will  altogether  cease.  No  nation 
can  hereafter  justify  itself  in  the  eyes  of 
tne  world  m  going  to  war  from  selfish  mo- 
tives. Only  when  the  national  integrity  is 
threatened,  or  the  weak  are  oppressed,  is  a  people  justi- 
fied in  going  to  war.  Yet  selfish  and  belligerent  nations 
do  still  exist,  and  all  nations  will  therefore  probably  be 
obliged  for  the  present  to  maintain  armies  to  insure  their 
own  safety  and  self-respect  and  to  carry  out  their  part 
of  the  world's  social  programme. 

In  the  exercise  of  its  positive  function  the  state  first 
of  all  seeks  through  its  laws  to  establish  justice  among 
individuals;  that  is,  to  provide  conditions 
function!*"  which  will  allow  full  and  equal  opportunity 
for  every  individual  to  exert  his  powers 
within  the  limit  of  the  common  good.  The  state,  having 
in  mind  the  universal  good,  must  have  the  right,  of  course, 
to  say  where  the  exercise  of  one  person's  powers  are  inter- 
fering with  others  in  the  exercise  of  their  powers,  and 
hence  set  the  limits  to  acts  of  the  individual  which  would 
interfere  with  the  general  good.  What  is  true  of  the 
rights  of  the  state  as  to  the  control  of  individuals  must 
apply  to  its  control  over  institutions.  The  rights  and 
powers  of  the  state  are  supreme,  for  the  state  is  all  the 
people  acting  for  the  greatest  good  of  all. 

The  positive  function  of  the  state  also  extends  to  the 
carrying  out  of  certain  lines  of  activity  related  to  the  gen- 
Projects  best  era^  welfare.  There  are  many  undertakings 
camed  out  which,  because  of  their  stupendous  nature, 
^  can  be  carried  out  only  by  the  state.  Pres- 
ent illustrations  of  projects  of  this  nature  are  the  building 
of  the  Panama  Canal  and  the  vast  reclamation  projects 


82  SOCIAL  PRINCIPLES  OF  EDUCATION 

under  way  in  the  Western  States.  In  addition,  there  are 
certain  other  projects  of  such  nature  as  to  require  uni- 
form administration  for  the  whole  country,  and  hence 
can  best  be  administered  by  the  state.  In  our  own  coun- 
try the  postal  system  is  the  best  illustration  of  this  class 
of  activities.  In  carrying  out  its  positive  function,  it  is 
the  duty  of  the  state  to  take  over  to  itself  only  those  func- 
tions which  can  best  be  administered  by  all  of  society 
acting  through  its  officials,  and  then  to  carry  out  such 
functions  for  the  benefit  of  the  whole  people.  The  state 
should  not  enter  upon  fields  in  which  individual  initiative, 
acting  under  regulations  set  by  the  state,  can  equally 
well  carry  out  the  function.  In  cases,  however,  where  the 
state  cannot  well  set  the  limits  for  individual  or  corpo- 
rate activities,  or  cannot  enforce  its  regulations,  then  the 
state  should  manifestly  take  over  the  activity  to  itself. 

Under  the  older  regimes,  before  the  individual  and 
society  had  risen  to  full  self -consciousness,  there  was  little 
Relation  of  the  opportunity  for  the  individual  to  partici- 
individuai  to  pate  in  the  affairs  of  the  state.  The  state 
has  responded  to  the  universal  movement 
toward  social  and  political  democracy,  however,  and  is 
to-day  essentially  what  it  is  made  by  the  participation  of 
its  members.  The  participation  of  the  individual  in  the 
affairs  of  the  state  is  of  necessity  of  a  much  more  general 
and  indirect  nature  than  his  participation  in  the  smaller 
and  more  compact  social  institutions.  When  right  rela- 
tions exist  between  the  two,  the  individual  hardly  feels 
the  yoke  of  the  state's  authority;  the  different  projects 
of  the  state  are  directed  by  persons  for  the  most  part  un- 
known to  the  individual;  and  his  own  voice  in  the  state's 
affairs  is  expressed  through  representatives  chosen  for 
this  purpose.  The  ballot  is  the  individual's  sole  means  of 


INSTITUTIONAL  MODES  OF  EXPERIENCE      83 

exerting  his  influence  in  the  control  of  the  activities  of  the 
state,  and  the  immediate  effects  of  the  ballot  are  some- 
times hard  to  see.  The  result  is  that  the  individual  not 
infrequently  loses  sight  altogether  of  his  own  power  and 
authority,  and  either  fails  to  use  the  ballot  or  else  uses 
it  carelessly  or  for  his  own  personal  ends. 

Political  democracy  is  more  than  a  modus  operandi  of 
government;  it  is  far  more  than  a  piece  of  legislative  and 
administrative  machinery.  Democracy  is 
democracy?  an  expression  of  the  worth  and  intelligence 
of  the  individual;  it  is  a  spirit,  a  standpoint, 
a  confession  of  faith  in  the  ability  of  society  as  a  whole  to 
govern  itself.  Democracy  assumes  that  the  citizens  of 
the  state  shall  possess  the  intelligence,  the  public  spirit, 
and  the  ethical  standards  which  will  prompt  the  indi- 
vidual faithfully  to  do  his  share  in  shaping  the  activities 
of  the  state  for  the  common  good.  Let  the  individual  fail 
at  any  one  of  these  points  and  the  foundations  of  de- 
mocracy begin  to  weaken. 

Ignorance,  selfish  indifference,  and  low  ethical  stand- 
ards are,  therefore,  the  three  great  foes  of  representative 
government.  The  state  must,  in  sheer  self- 
defence,  protect  itself  at  these  points.  It 
must  see  that  its  citizens  are  educated,  that 
they  possess  the  spirit  of  patriotism,  and  that  high  ethical 
standards  are  put  at  a  premium. 

Education  is,  therefore,  in  a  very  immediate  and  vital 
way,  one  of  the  first  concerns  of  the  democratic  state. 
Education  a  Ari  educated  citizenship  is  a  bulwark  of 
chief  concern  safety  and  a  national  asset.  The  money 
spent  on  schools  is  returned  a  thousand- 
fold to  the  state  in  the  form  of  intelligent  participation 
in  its  activities  and  sympathetic  understanding  of  its 


84  SOCIAL  PRINCIPLES  OF  EDUCATION 

purposes.  The  state  could  without  doubt  expend  with 
excellent  returns  to  itself  much  more  than  it  is  now  put- 
ting into  our  public  schools.  The  four  hundred  millions 
which  we  are  now  expending  annually  for  public  educa- 
tion looks  like  an  immense  sum,  yet  it  is  not  more  than 
one-half  what  is  needed  to  put  school  support  on  an  ade- 
quate basis.  Nor  does  this  sum  seem  such  a  drain  on 
our  national  resources  when  we  consider  that  we  annually 
expend  fully  two  and  one-half  times  as  much  for  tobacco, 
and  five  times  as  much  for  liquor  as  for  the  current  ex- 
penses of  our  public  schools. 

It  is  axiomatic  that  education  in  a  democracy  must  be 
universal.  The  state  has  a  right  to  compel  its  citizens 
is  American  ^°  Decome  educated  to  the  degree  necessary 
education  to  make  them  safe  and  desirable  citizens. 

Most  of  our  commonwealths  now  have  com- 
pulsory education  laws  looking  to  this  end.  Much  still 
remains  to  be  desired  in  this  connection,  however,  as  is 
shown  by  the  fact  that  the  average  age  of  quitting  school 
in  this  country  is  about  twelve  years;  the  average  period 
of  school  attendance  is  a  trifle  over  two  full  years.  As 
long  as  these  conditions  obtain,  we  can  hardly  claim  an 
educated  citizenship;  for  children  under  twelve  years 
cannot  be  adequately  trained  for  citizenship,  and  espe- 
cially is  this  true  if  their  school  attendance  is  limited 
to  two  years. 

But,  dangerous  as  is  ignorance  to  the  life  of  the  state, 
it  is  probable  that  indifference  to  the  obligations  of  citi- 
Dangerfrom  zenship  are  a  still  greater  foe  to  public 
political  safety.  If  all  the  well-disposed  citizens  of 

indifference.  . i  .    i  .    •      ,t 

the  country  were  to  take  a  part  in  the  po- 
litical affairs  of  the  state  perpetually,  omitting  neither 
caucus,  nor  primary,  nor  convention,  nor  polling  place, 


INSTITUTIONAL  MODES  OF  EXPERIENCE      85 

the  control  of  the  political  boss  and  gangster  would 
speedily  come  to  an  end.  For  nearly  always,  in  the  case 
of  a  battle  between  the  forces  of  corruption  and  the  forces 
of  decency,  the  stay-at-home  vote  holds  the  balance  of 
power.  And  the  stay-at-home  vote  does  not  consist  of 
the  forces  of  corruption,  but  of  decent  citizens  whose 
selfish  interests  or  lack  of  public  spirit  keep  them  from 
the  polls. 

Political  ethics  is  undergoing  a  radical  reconstruction 
in  this  country  at  the  present  time.  Graft  and  corrup- 
Awakening  of  ^on  practised  in  high  places  have  born  fruit 
political  in  petty  graft  and  corruption  in  small  mat- 

ters. Legislative  votes  cast  not  in  the  in- 
terest of  public  welfare  but  to  support  special  privilege 
have  had  their  counterpart  in  votes  sold  for  a  pittance 
at  the  polls  on  election  day.  The  selling  of  the  franchise 
for  money  or  preferment  has  reached  alarming  propor- 
tions in  many  parts  of  the  country.  This  practice  strikes 
at  the  very  centre  of  national  life  through  corrupting  the 
morals  of  its  citizens.  But  the  civic  conscience  is  awaken- 
ing; bribery  and  corruption  are  being  uncovered  and 
punished ;  public  office  is  coming  to  be  a  public  trust,  and 
official  responsibility  an  opportunity  for  social  service. 
,  .  Education  has  no  higher  aim  than  the 

The  educa-  .  °       . 

tionai  aim  preparation  of  youth  for  efficient  citizenship . 
must  include  This  aim  must  include  not  only  the  train- 

the  state.  .          ».«_•«  . 

ing  of  the  intellect,  but  also  the  inculcating 
of  an  unselfish  and  aggressive  patriotism  based  on  high 
moral  and  ethical  standards. 


86  SOCIAL  PRINCIPLES  OF  EDUCATION 


VI.     The  School  as  the  Instrument  of  Education 

The  school  is  the  one  institution  that  belongs  exclu- 
sively to  the  child.  Not  only  did  the  needs  of  the  child 
The  school  the  originally  call  the  school  into  being,  but 
child's  they  also  constantly  must  determine  its 

stitution.  character  and  activities.  The  school  dif- 
fers from  the  other  social  institutions  in  that  its  function 
is  more  sharply  denned  and  its  activities  more  narrowly 
limited  than  theirs.  The  home,  for  example,  has  many 
functions,  among  the  chief  of  which  are  the  biological,  the 
economic,  and  the  social.  The  state  carries  out  a  vast 
number  of  different  lines  of  activity.  But  the  school  has 
only  a  single  function — that  of  educating  children;  hence 
all  its  activities  are  concerned  with  this  one  end. 

Society  has  evolved  the  school  as  the  means  through 
which  to  attain  its  educational  aim,  the  specialized  instru- 
The  school  as  ment  for  transmitting  its  culture  and  ideals 
an  education  to  the  new  generation.  Our  schools  may  be 
looked  upon  as  a  great  system  of  education 
factories  in  which  the  children  are  both  the  raw  material 
and  the  workers.  The  curriculum,  equipment,  and  or- 
ganization are  the  tools  used  in  the  process  by  which  the 
child  is  made  over  into  an  active,  efficient,  contributing 
member  of  society.  The  teacher,  through  his  manage- 
ment of  the  school,  through  instruction,  and  through  the 
influence  of  his  personality,  supplies  the  most  favorable 
conditions  possible  under  which  the  child  is  to  work. 

The  problem  in  the  school,  as  in  any  other 

the™chooi.UP°n    factory,  is  to  secure  the  largest  output  with 

the  least  waste  of  material  and  labor.    On 

the  one  side,  society  expects  in  return  for  its  outlay 


INSTITUTIONAL  MODES  OF  EXPERIENCE      87 

men  and  women  vitalized  by  contact  with  the  choicest 
in  the  race's  thought,  feeling,  and  achievement,  and 
made  ready  for  efficient  participation  in  social  activities. 
On  the  other  side,  the  individual  looks  for  the  fullest 
possible  developfnent  of  his  powers  and  capacities  in  a 
significant  and  growing  experience  which  forms  an  in- 
tegral part  of  the  broader  social  experience  which  con- 
stitutes his  environment. 

Waste  in  education  is  hard  to  measure.  There  are 
no  standardized  units  in  which  to  sum  up  educational 
Dim  ultv  growth  and  development.  Furthermore, 

measuring  influences  entirely  outside  the  organized 
waste  in  activities  of  education  are  operating  on  the 

life  of  the  child,  and  forces  within  his  own 
nature  are  ripening  wholly  irrespective  of  the  school.  The 
ultimate  test,  that  of  efficient  participation  in  the  social 
process  and  continued  personal  growth,  is  long  delayed. 
While  results  are  therefore  not  only  the  theoretical  but 
the  final  test  of  any  system  of  schools,  results  are  so  hard 
to  measure  and  so  long  in  coming  that  they  are  not  a  ser- 
viceable measure  of  the  success  of  any  particular  school. 
The  best  test  of  a  school  is  its  activities.  What  is 
going  on  in  the  school?  Are  the  pupils  there  regularly? 
Are  they  spontaneously  employing  their 
school. "  powers?  Is  the  work  they  are  doing  sig- 

nificant because  related  to  the  permanent 
and  fundamental  interests  that  are  dominating  their 
lives?  Is  the  organization  of  the  school  such  as  to  stim- 
ulate the  social  impulses  and  develop  ethical  impulses  and 
control?  Is  the  curriculum  vitally  related  to  the  social 
process  of  which  the  children  are  a  part?  Is  the  teacher 
a  worthy  representative  of  social  culture,  inspiring  in  his 
personality  and  professionally  equipped  for  his  work? 


88  SOCIAL  PRINCIPLES  OF  EDUCATION 

If  such  questions  as  these,  dealing  with  the  activities  of 
the  school,  can  be  satisfactorily  answered,  there  will  be 
little  occasion  for  concern  over  the  quality  of  the  output, 
or  over  the  question  of  waste  in  the  education  factory. 

Measured  by  the  standards  just  state'd,  there  are  cer- 
tain sources  of  waste  in  our  present  system  of  schools 
Sources  of  *-ha.t  snould  cause  us  grave  concern.  First 
waste  in  of  all,  our  children  do  not  continue  long 

enough  hi  the  schools.  There  is  too  much 
leakage  between  grades,  too  much  waste  of  opportunity. 
Professor  Thorndike  has  shown  that,1  for  all  cities  of 
25,000  and  over  in  the  country,  out  of  every  100  chil- 
dren who  enter  the  first  grade  10  have  dropped  out  be- 
fore reaching  the  fourth  grade;  19  before  reaching  the 
fifth  grade;  32  before  reaching  the  sixth  grade;  46  before 
reaching  the  seventh  grade;  60  before  reaching  the  eighth 
grade;  and  92  before  reaching  the  twelfth  grade.  This 
showing  is  undoubtedly  better  than  would  hold  for  the 
entire  country.  This  means  that  only  40  per  cent  of  our 
children  are  receiving  a  common-school  education  and 
8  per  cent  a  high-school  education.  The  average  age  of 
leaving  school  is  about  twelve  years,  after  an  aggregate 
attendance  of  slightly  more  than  two  full  years.  We  can 
hardly  hope  to  train  to  intelligent  and  efficient  partici- 
pation in  a  democracy  under  these  conditions. 

Further,  there  is  a  great  waste  from  irregular  attend- 
ance.   An  industrial  concern  would  hardly  think  it  pos- 
sible to  run  with  from  a  quarter  to  a  third 
attendance.        °^  ^s  operatives  constantly  idle.    Yet  this 
is  what  we  do  in  the  schools.    The  average 
daily  attendance  in  some  States  falls  as  low  as  65  or 
75  per  cent  of  the  registration.     Of  course  a  perfect 

1  Bulletin  of  United  States  Commission  of  Education,  No.  377. 


INSTITUTIONAL  MODES  OF  EXPERIENCE      89 

percentage  of  attendance  cannot  be  expected,  but 
school-going  is  hardly  yet  considered  by  many  as  a 
business  which  needs  the  same  regularity  as  any  other 
business. 

Probably,  however,  the  greatest  source  of  waste  in 
our  present  schools  is  in  the  teaching.  We  have  not  yet 
as  a  nation  learned  the  economy  of  expert 
teaching.  Our  standards  for  entering  the 
vocation  are  low,  and  the  professional  re- 
quirement of  those  in  the  work  almost  negligible.  Teach- 
ing is  gradually  being  given  over  into  the  hands  of  women, 
there  being  now  slightly  over  twenty  per  cent  of  men  in 
the  work.  The  compensation  is  hardly  sufficient  to  war- 
rant men  to  accept  classroom  work  as  a  life  occupation 
except  in  the  larger  cities.  It  is  not  unusual  for  pupils 
to  pass  through  the  entire  twelve  grades  of  the  public 
school  without  having  any  instruction  under  a  man 
teacher. 

It  need  hardly  be  explained  that  no  criticism  is  in- 
tended on  the  value  and  ability  of  women  as  teachers. 
Teaching  But  both  men  and  women  are  needed  in 

mostly  by  the  school,  as  in  the  home.    Further,  it  is 

impossible  to  develop  a  professional  spirit 
and  technique  when  the  term  of  service  in  the  vocation 
is  short;  and  the  proportion  of  women  engaged  in  teach- 
ing materially  shortens  the  tenure  in  the  work.  For 
women  will  not,  and  should  not,  look  upon  teaching  as 
a  life  work.  Their  career  ultimately  lies  in  the  home,  and 
there  most  of  them  are  to  be  found  after  a  year  or  two 
in  the  schoolroom. 

From  the  nature  of  its  origin  and  its  function,  the 
school  is  the  complement  of  the  other  social  institutions. 
In  primitive  societies,  no  schools  are  needed,  for  the  home, 


90  SOCIAL  PRINCIPLES  OF  EDUCATION 

the  state,  and  the  church,  being  simple  in  their  organiza- 

tion and  function,  are  able  to  take  care  of  the  instruc- 

tion of  the  child  in  all  the  lines  necessary  for 

The  school  a  .  *.••*.•        •      ^      vr        r          -_» 

supplement  to     efficient  participation  in  the  life  of  society 


other  insti-  as  j^n  organized.  But,  as  life  grows  more 
complex,  two  changes  take  place  in  this  re- 
lationship; the  institutions  themselves  find  their  activi- 
ties so  multiplied  that  they  have  not  the  time  for  teach- 
ing the  young,  and  the  educational  demands  grow  so 
complex  that  only  an  institution  giving  all  its  time  and 
attention  to  the  work  of  education,  and  organized  with 
this  specific  end  in  view,  can  carry  out  the  work  of  teach- 
ing the  young.  For  example,  in  primitive  societies  the 
home  is  able  to  instruct  the  child  in  all  that  is  needed  of 
the  simple  arts  and  crafts  required  to  fit  the  individual 
into  so  elementary  a  social  process.  But  as  social  inter- 
ests multiply,  and  as  the  home  itself  takes  on  many  new 
functions  growing  out  of  the  more  highly  organized  social 
life,  it  finds  the  educating  of  children  far  beyond  its 
power. 

Likewise,  in  the  early  state,  the  duties  of  citizenship 
were  taught  the  young  men  by  the  chieftain  of  the  tribe 
and  fully  exemplified  by  him  in  their  presence  in  the  hunt 
or  on  the  war-path.  But  as  the  simply  organized  tribe 
grew  into  the  complex  state  with  its  citizens  numbered 
by  millions,  it  manifestly  became  impossible  to  train  for 
citizenship  in  any  such  way. 

The  early  church  made  it  an  important  part  of  its 
function  to  instruct  its  members,  and  particularly  the 
young,  in  the  principles  of  religion,  and  in  the  creed  and 
technique  of  the  church.  In  the  United  States,  this  func- 
tion still  rests  with  the  church,  with  whatever  help  can 
be  had  from  the  home.  In  England,  France,  and  Ger- 


INSTITUTIONAL  MODES  OF  EXPERIENCE      91 

many,  however,  instruction  in  religion  is  a  regular  part 
of  the  school's  function. 

The  school  has,  therefore,  arisen  out  of  very  immediate 

and  concrete  social  needs.    At  the  time  of  its  origin,  it 

took  over  a  set  of  very  necessary  functions 

The  school  ...          f          ,    , 

must  keep          that  the  other  institutions  found  themselves 
close  to  social     unable  successfully  to  carry  out.     It  had 

no  doubtful  or  distant  aim.  It  responded 
fully  to  the  social  demands  and  purpose.  There  was  no 
danger  of  a  divorcement  of  the  educational  aim  from  the 
social  aim;  for  they  were  one  and  the  same.  The  great 
problem  of  the  school  at  all  stages  of  its  development  is 
to  maintain  this  immediacy  of  response  to  social  needs 
and  the  social  aim.  That  it  has  not  been  able  to  do  this 
at  all  times  is  not  strange;  for  social  needs  and  the  social 
aim  are  not  always  easy  to  interpret.  But  that  the  school 
should  be  allowed  to  continue  out  of  harmony  with  so- 
ciety would  indicate  that  society  has  not  yet  been  able 
to  select,  organize,  and  administer  a  means  of  carrying 
out  its  aim. 

While  the  school  has  so  important  a  set  of  functions, 
it  may  nevertheless  be  questioned  whether  the  other 
is  too  much  social  institutions  are  not  expecting  and 
demanded  of  demanding  too  much  of  the  school ;  whether 

they  are  not  making  the  school  a  dumping 
ground  for  activities  in  which  they  themselves  are  fail- 
ing or  which  they  are  shirking.  Homes  that  are  not  able 
to  control  rebellious  or  wayward  children  not  infrequently 
turn  the  problem  over  to  the  school  with  a  sigh  of  relief, 
expecting  the  school  to  reform  where  the  home  was  un- 
able to  form.  Or  other  homes  in  which  an  atmosphere  of 
bickering  and  fault-finding  prevails,  and  in  which  the 
rules  of  common  courtesy  and  politeness  are  constantly 


92  SOCIAL  PRINCIPLES  OF  EDUCATION 

violated,  expect  the  school  to  train  the  child  to  gentle 
conduct  and  a  responsive  disposition. 

Similarly  the  community  not  infrequently  works  at 
cross-purposes  with  the  school  in  requiring  that  the  school 

teach  children  the  principles  of  hygiene  and 
munity'and  temperate  living,  and  at  the  same  time 
school  may  offers  for  sale  tobacco  and  cigarettes  to 
purposes"0  school  children  and  tempts  them  by  saloons 

and  worse  dens  of  vice.  The  school  is  ex- 
pected to  instruct  children  in  the  laws  of  health  and  how 
to  avoid  diseases  whose  communication  and  progress  are 
due  to  lack  of  cleanliness  or  reasonable  caution.  Yet 
schoolrooms  themselves  are  not  always  clean  and  well 
ventilated;  the  common  drinking-cup  is  yet  common; 
food  that  has  been  exposed  to  the  dirt  and  dust  of  the 
street  or  store  is  daily  sold  for  food. 

The  state  demands  that  the  school  shall  teach  the 
principles  of  good  citizenship,  honesty,  patriotism,  and 

obedience  to  law.  Yet  there  are  many  un- 
thTstate.  desirable  citizens  among  us;  honesty  is  not 

yet  the  established  rule  among  all  citizens; 
there  are  those  that  put  private  interest  above  patriotism ; 
and  not  a  few  law-breakers  go  about  among  us  unpun- 
ished. 

Of  course,  it  is  not  to  be  expected  that  the  home,  the 
community,  or  the  state  will  be  perfect  any  more  than 
in  •  ^  *..  tnat  the  school  will  be  perfect.  And  the 

All  institutions  ..... 

should  assist  fact  that  the  other  social  institutions  are 
j°  ed^ting  not  fully  meeting  their  problems  does  not 
imply  that  the  school  shall  be  indifferent  to 
the  demands  placed  upon  it.  The  problem  of  educating 
the  child  is  a  common  problem.  All  the  institutions  are 
involved  in  it.  The  school  cannot  do  it  all.  The  other 


INSTITUTIONAL  MODES  OF  EXPERIENCE      93 

institutions  must  do  their  part  and  furnish  an  atmosphere 
that  is  not  only  not  hostile  to  the  work  the  school  has 
set  for  it  to  do,  but  an  atmosphere  that  renders  the  work 
of  the  school  more  easy  and  fruitful.  Team  work  among 
the  social  institutions  is  the  first  requisite  in  the  educa- 
tion of  the  child. 


REFERENCES 

On  institutions  in  general:  Addams,  Democracy  and  Social 
Ethics;  Bagley,  Educative  Process,  ch.  II;  Bosanquet,  Philo- 
sophical Theory  of  the  Slate;  Chancellor,  Motives,  Ideals  and  Values 
in  Education,  ch.  II;  Coleman,  Social  Ethics;  Dewey  and  Tufts, 
Ethics,  part  III;  Henderson,  Social  Elements,  part  III;  Riidiger, 
Principles  of  Education,  ch.  XIV. 

On  the  home:  H.  Bosanquet,  The  Family;  Dewey  and  Tufts, 
Ethics,  ch.  XXVI;  Eliot,  American  Contributions  to  Education,  ch. 
V;  Parsons,  The  Family,  chs.  XIV,  XV;  Saleeby,  Parenthood 
and  Race  Culture;  Small  and  Vincent,  Introduction  to  the  Study 
of  Society,  books  III,  IV;  articles  by  Talbot,  Sumner,  Oilman, 
Henderson,  and  Morrow  in  American  Journal  of  Sociology,  vol.  14. 

On  the  community:  Small  and  Vincent,  Introduction  to  the 
Study  of  Society,  book  II. 

On  the  church:  Brown,  Social  Message  of  the  Modern  Pulpit; 
Caird,  Philosophy  of  Religion;  Coe,  Education  in  Religion  and 
Morals;  Commons,  Social  Reform  and  the  Church;  Gladden,  The 
Church  and  Modern  Life;  Henderson,  Social  Duties;  King,  The- 
ology and  the  Social  Consciousness;  Mathews,  Social  Teachings  of 
Jesus;  Peabody,  Jesus  Christ  and  the  Social  Question;  Starbuck, 
The  Psychology  of  Religion;  Education  and  National  Character, 
published  by  The  Religious  Education  Association;  articles  by 
Judson,  Cochran,  Kerby,  Evans,  Simkhovitch,  Mangold,  and 
Allen  in  Annals  of  the  American  Academy,  vol.  XXX. 

On  the  State:  Bosanquet,  Philosophical  Theory  of  the  State; 
Hill,  World  Organization  and  the  Modern  State;  McKechnie,  The 
State  and  the  Individual;  Willoughby,  Nature  of  the  State. 

On  the  school:  Chancellor,  Our  School,  ch.  II;  Dewey,  The 
School  and  Society;  Dutton  and  Snedden,  The  Administration  of 


94          SOCIAL  PRINCIPLES  OF  EDUCATION 

Education  in  the  United  Stales;  Eliot,  American  Contributions  to 
Education,  ch.  VIII;  Gilbert,  The  School  and  Its  Life;  Hanus,  A 
Modern  School,  ch.  V;  Henderson,  Principles  of  Education,  chs. 
XV,  XVI;  Jenks,  Citizenship  and  the  Schools;  King,  Social 
Aspects  of  Education;  MacVannell,  Philosophy  of  Education,  ch. 
X;  Scott,  Social  Education;  Spencer,  Education. 


CHAPTER  VI 

EDUCATION  AND  VOCATIONAL  MODES  OF  EXPERIENCE 
I.     Vocations  as  a  Mode  of  Social  Evolution 

All  human  progress  rests  on  toil  and  sacrifice.  It  has 
been  so  from  the  beginning  and  will  be  so  till  the  end. 
Work  at  the  Man  early  learned  that  only  by  the  sweat 
basis  of  all  of  his  face  should  he  eat  bread.  He  quickly 

outgrew  the  nomadic  impulse  that  led  him 
to  wander  about,  living  precariously  on  the  gratuities  of 
nature  obtained  from  the  chase  or  the  untamed  fields. 
He  settled  down  and  became  a  worker.  He  became  the 
master  of  his  environment  and  made  it  yield  to  his  com- 
fort and  advancement.  His  mastery  gave  him  a  sense  of 
power.  He  became  provident,  and  was  no  longer  de- 
pendent on  the  accident  of  season  or  the  supply  of  game 
for  his  food.  The  rigors  of  climate  have  no  longer  any 
terrors  for  him.  He  has  emancipated  himself  from  the 
grip  of  circumstances  and  become  a  ruler  in  his  domain 
through  work. 

Once  having  learned  to  work,  man  makes  this  his  chief 
business.  He  tills  the  soil  until  it  yields  every  manner 

of  fruit.  He  takes  the  iron  from  the  mine, 
worker.  ^G  wood  from  the  forest,  and  the  clay  from 

the  hill-side  and  makes  them  into  homes, 
factories,  and  cathedrals.  He  harnesses  the  rivers,  tunnels 
the  mountains,  and  bridges  the  oceans  for  his  commerce. 
He  pries  out  the  secrets  of  nature  and  develops  science. 

95 


96  SOCIAL  PRINCIPLES  OF  EDUCATION 

He  immortalizes  his  hopes,  his  aspirations,  and  his  suffer- 
ings in  literature  and  art.  Man  is  patiently  climbing 
upward  and  is  carrying  his  environment  with  him. 
Work  has  been  the  greatest  formative  influence  in  his 
evolution;  it  is  the  means  by  which  he  has  created  civ- 
ilization. 

At  first  man's  work  was  heterogeneous  and  unorgan- 
ized.   Each  was  his  own  butcher,  baker,  and  candlestick- 
Diverse  nature    maker.    But,  finally,  both  personal  choice 
of  primitive        and  economy  of  effort  led  to  division  of 
labor.    One  man  became  a  tiller  of  the  soil, 
another  became  a  miner,  another  a  fisherman,  and  so  on. 
Vocations  were  having  their  rise.    And  the  process  of 
subdivision  has  gone  on  until  an  astonishing  degree  of 
refinement  has  resulted.    Each  worker  must 
labor!01  now  develop  a  very  high  grade  of  skill  in 

a  narrow  field.  The  Jack  of  all  trades  finds 
no  place  in  the  world's  work  under  modern  conditions. 
The  day  of  specialists  is  here. 

There  are  many  vocations,  but  man's  needs  lie  at  the 
centre  of  them  all;  hence  they  are  all  interrelated.  In- 
deed, social  unity  and  interdependence  are 
nowhere  better  illustrated  than  in  the  voca- 
tions. Let  the  railway  workers  strike,  and 
a  city  goes  hungry.  A  season's  crops  fail,  and  business 
and  the  other  industries  feel  the  stringency.  A  score  of 
vocations  unite  to  set  our  breakfast-table,  and  half  a 
hundred  men  working  a  thousand  miles  apart  join  hands 
in  supplying  us  with  a  suit  of  clothes.  The  scientist  is 
helpless  without  the  skilled  mechanic  to  construct  his 
instruments  and  machines,  and  both  pay  tribute  to  the 
farmer,  who  in  turn  profits  by  the  work  of  the  scientist 
and  the  inventor. 


VOCATIONAL  MODES  OF  EXPERIENCE         97 

Men  work  for  two  very  good  and  sufficient  reasons: 
first,  because  they  have  to,  and  second,  because  they  de- 
„  ^  sire  to.  Both  economic  and  social  necessity, 

Vocations  ,  .    •" 

a  universal         as  we  have  already  seen,  spur  men  to  labor. 


He  who  will  not  work  may  not  eat,  and 
neither  will  he  stand  well  among  his  fellows. 
Man  is  too  great  to  be  satisfied  with  mere  dawdling  or 
the  expenditure  of  his  powers  on  the  trivial  and  inconse- 
quent. He  is  at  his  best  only  when  some  great  purpose 
demands  all  his  energies  in  fruitful  toil.  Vocations  con- 
stitute, therefore,  a  universal  mode  of  existence.  The 
only  exceptions  are  to  be  found  at  the  two  opposite  poles 
of  society,  and  both  are  equally  abnormalities  and  in  the 
way  of  progress.  The  one  is  the  vagabond,  lacking  in 
initiative  and  too  lazy  to  provide  for  himself  by  work; 
the  other  is  the  rich  idler,  also  lacking  in  initiative,  and 
too  lazy  to  work  when  not  compelled  to  provide  for  him- 
self. Not  only  are  none  so  useless,  but  none  are  so  devoid 
of  interest  and  incentive  as  those  who  have  nothing 
worthy  to  do. 

The  many  vocations  that  have  been  differentiated  in 
the  evolution  of  the  social  process  can  be  grouped  in  a 
Fundamental  *ew  broad  typical  lines.  Each  of  these  lines 
groups  of  represents  some  one  great  field  of  human 

needs  which  it  supplies,  and  all  together 
unite  to  form  one  of  the  strongest  unifying  principles 
of  society. 

II.     The  Industrial  Vocations 

The  industrial  pursuits,  such  as  agriculture,  mining, 
and  the  trades,  are  the  oldest  and  most  fundamental  of 
all  the  vocations.  Man's  first  necessities  are  material; 


98  SOCIAL  PRINCIPLES  OF  EDUCATION 

he  must  have  food,  shelter,  and  clothing.  All  the  insti- 
tutions, indeed  the  entire  social  fabric,  rests  on  an  eco- 
industriai  voca-  norm'c  basis.  Leisure  and  the  opportunity 
tions  underlie  for  education  and  the  refinements  of  life  are 

based  on  some  one's  productive  toil.  All 
who  study,  or  teach,  or  write,  or  paint  pictures  must 
have  some  other  members  of  society  supplying  them 
with  the  necessities  of  life  and  the  materials  that  go  into 
their  work.  In  former  times  this  was  accomplished  by 
slaves,  who  were  looked  upon  as  extra-social,  and  hence 
possessed  of  no  rights  of  their  own. 

But  with  slavery  gone,  and  the  industrial  workers 
constituting  one  of  the  most  important  groups  in  our 
The  problem  democracy,  the  problem  changes.  It  now 
of  industrial  becomes  the  aim  so  to  utilize  scientific 
workers.  methods  of  production  in  the  industries, 

and  so  to  train  the  worker  in  the  use  of  his  powers 
and  the  technique  of  his  labor,  that  the  largest  possi- 
ble output  shall  result  from  the  expenditure  of  time 
and  effort  on  the  part  of  the  worker.  For  the  less  of 
human  energy  it  is  necessary  to  put  into  the  economic 
basis  of  life,  the  more  there  will  be  available  for  other 
lines  of  progress  and  for  a  broader  development  of  the 
individual. 

Therefore,  the  man  who,  through  better  conceiving  his 
work,  or  better  training  himself  for  it,  or  by  inventing 

improved  appliances  or  methods,  can  make 
labor!!*  °*  two  blades  of  grass  grow  where  one  grew 

before  is  a  benefactor  of  his  race.  He  is  in 
so  far  a  creator,  and  is  fulfilling  a  function  than  which 
there  is  none  higher.  He  is  ministering  to  one  of  the  most 
immediate  and  fundamental  of  human  needs  and  is  him- 
self in  contact  with  the  deepest  realities  of  experience. 


VOCATIONAL  MODES  OF  EXPERIENCE    99 

It  is  this  fact  that  gives  labor  its  dignity  and  makes  pro- 
ductive toil  a  contribution  to  human  progress. 

Society  has  been  slow  in  including  the  industrial  occu- 
pations in  its  educational  aim.     In  fact,  it  has  been 

rather  the  fashion  in  certain  quarters  to 
ataf  s*owto  decry  as  spurious  all  education  that  is 
include  "practical"  in  the  sense  that  it  touches  the 

vacations.          industrial  activities.     It  is  true  that  the 

old-time  guilds  opened  schools  for  their  ap- 
prentices in  which  they  were  given  training  in  their  voca- 
tion. But  when  the  state  took  up  education,  this  type 
of  training  was  for  the  most  part  omitted.  In  recent 
times,  Germany,  England,  and  France  have  seen  their 
mistake  in  the  matter  of  industrial  education  and  have 
made  this  an  integral  part  of  their  school  programme. 
Until  recently  it  has  been  one  of  the  anomalies  in  our 
own  educational  system  that  in  many  States  the  only 
industrial  education  offered  at  the  expense  of  the  state 
was  in  the  reform  schools.  But  the  social  demand  that 
industrial  training  shall  form  a  part  of  general  education 
has  become  very  insistent  and  all  but  universal.  The 
schools  are  responding  to  the  demand  and  the  programmes 
are  being  reconstructed  to  include  this  work.  In  addi- 
tion, many  municipalities  are  now  establishing  special 
trade  schools  in  which  a  thorough  knowledge  of,  and  skill 
in,  the  industries  may  be  obtained.  Not  only  is  agricult- 
ure being  introduced  into  the  common  schools  in  many 
States,  but  special  schools  and  courses  are  being  organ- 
ized throughout  the  land. 

Division  of  labor      One  of  ^e  most  significant  facts  in  mod- 
causes  loss  of     ern  industries  is  the  division  of  labor  with 

its  high  degree  of  specialization,  and  the 
introduction  of  machines  to  do  the  work  formerly  done 


100         SOCIAL  PRINCIPLES  OF  EDUCATION 

with  hands.  So  far  as  the  activities  involved  in  the 
actual  labor  itself  are  concerned,  it  seems  inevitable 
that  the  individual  must  be  the  loser  by  the  change. 
For  it  is  hard  to  maintain  the  same  interest  in  the  work 
of  daily  smoothing  the  edge  of  hundreds  of  shoe  heels  at 
a  machine  that  attached  to  making  the  whole  shoe  when 
this  was  done  by  hand.  The  acts  that  go  into  the  labor 
become  automatic  and  less  of  the  self  is  called  forth.  The 
worker  tends  to  become  a  machine. 

Proper  adjustment  to  this  phase  of  the  industrial  sit- 
uation requires  that  the  worker  shall  apply  his  interest 
and  initiative  toward  making  himself  the 
necessary?*  most  expert  specialist  possible  in  his  nar- 
row field.  In  this  way  he  will  find  satisfac- 
tion in  his  labor  and  will  also  increase  his  production  as 
measured  per  unit  of  time  and  effort.  As  a  compensation 
for  this  increased  productivity  he  must  himself  receive 
better  hygienic,  social,  and  moral  conditions  under  which 
to  work.  He  must  receive  larger  pay  in  order  that  his 
standard  of  living  may  advance.  And  he  must  work 
fewer  hours  so  that  he  may  have  time  for  recreation  and 
self-improvement. 

It  is  imperative  that  the  problem  of  a  better  adjust- 
ment of  the  industrial  workers  to  changed  conditions  in 
Problems  modern  industries  shall  be  worked  out,  and 

pressing  for  that  this  group  of  vocations  shall  receive 
solution.  ^^  gjyy.g  o£  {ke  advantage  that  has  come 

from  the  more  efficient  modes  of  production.  For  it 
matters  not  how  loud  the  roar  of  our  factories,  how 
long  our  railroads,  or  how  high  our  buildings  if  hu- 
man life  is  being  degraded  or  left  undeveloped  in  the 
process;  the  result  cannot  be  progress.  The  greatest 
wealth  of  society  is  after  all  her  men  and  women.  A 


VOCATIONAL  MODES  OF  EXPERIENCE       101 

worthy  and  permanent  civilization  cannot  be  built  on 
industrial  slavery  or  injustice. 


///.    The  Business  Vocations 

Necessary  as  are  the  industrial  vocations,  the  industrial 
workers  alone,  functioning  solely  as  producers  in  the  in- 
Necessity  for  dustries,  could  never  build  a  complex  civili- 
business  zation.  Crops  must  be  raised,  but  grains 

must  also  be  distributed  to  the  world's  mar- 
kets. Iron  must  be  dug  from  the  mine,  smelted,  and  made 
into  machines,  but  this  can  best  be  done  on  a  large  scale 
and  with  an  organized  system  that  requires  minute  divi- 
sion of  labor  and  the  use  of  much  costly  machinery. 

The  business  vocations  stand  for  the  organization  and 
direction  of  industrial  energy,  and  for  the  application 
Nature  of  °^  capital  toward  making  the  effort  ex- 

business  pended  in  the  industries  more  productive. 

Factories  are  set  up,  transportation  sys- 
tems put  into  operation,  efficient  methods  of  exchange 
devised,  and  all  the  rest  of  the  vast  machinery  of  the  pro- 
duction and  distribution  of  wealth  co-ordinated  and  made 
effective  by  those  acting  in  the  business  vocations. 

Through  the  introduction  of  labor-saving  machines, 
the  application  of  more  efficient  methods  of  manufacture, 
_  and,  above  all,  through  skilful  organization 

Common  .  /-,,,- 

interests  of  and  management  in  the  field  of  production 
capital  and  an(j  distribution,  the  business  vocations  have 
doubled  and  trebled  the  value  of  human 
energy  as  applied  to  the  industries.  Business  workers  are 
therefore  as  necessary  in  any  highly  organized  society  as 
are  industrial  workers,  and  each  group  supplements  the 
activities  of  the  other.  There  can  be  no  fundamental 


102         SOCIAL  PRINCIPLES  OF  EDUCATION 

antagonism  between  the  interests  of  the  two  classes.  The 
struggle  that  is  being  waged  between  labor  and  capital 
does  not  grow  out  of  a  conflict  that  is  inherent  in  their  re- 
lations, but  out  of  class  blindness  and  selfishness  and  social 
malorganization.  . 

The  business  occupations  differ  from  the  industrial 
in  affording  greater  opportunities  for  the  satisfying  of 
certain  instincts  for  competition  and  con- 
betweenCCS  ^c^-  ^n  ^s  evolution,  man  has  come  up 
business  and  through  ages  of  fierce  struggle,  and  these 
vocations.  experiences  have  left  in  him  the  love  of  a 
contest.  Wars  are  becoming  less  common 
and  hand-to-hand  conflict  is  wholly  tabooed.  But  the 
contests  of  the  modern  business  arena  supply  an  outlet 
for  these  fighting  tendencies.  They  lack  nothing  of  the 
cunning  and  but  little  of  the  ferocity  of  the  earlier  com- 
bats with  the  enemy  in  the  forest  or  on  the  battle-field. 
In  the  fierce  struggles  on  the  board  of  trade  little  quarter 
is  asked  or  given. 

The  problem  of  the  business  vocations  is  a  double  one. 
Its  first  aspect  is  so  to  adjust  the  relations  of  business  to 
Problem  of  the  industries  that  the  industrial  workers 
the  business  shall  not  be  exploited  for  the  advantage  of 
capital.  It  is  true  that,  on  the  whole,  the 
business  vocations  engage  a  higher  grade  of  intelligence 
and  education  than  the  industrial  occupations  and  can 
therefore  justly  claim  larger  rewards  for  their  workers. 
The  inherent  selfishness  in  human  nature  has,  however, 
impelled  business  to  take  more  than  its  fair  share  of  the 
joint  product  of  the  two  vocations.  Great  masses  of  in- 
dustrial workers  have  been  exploited  to  enrich  business 
and  have  themselves  been  reduced  to  the  lowest  living 
wage.  This  has  precluded  for  a  large  proportion  of  the 


VOCATIONAL  MODES  OF  EXPERIENCE       103 

industrial  workers  not  only  all  the  luxuries  and  refine- 
ments of  life,  but  in  many  cases  nearly  all  of  its  comforts 
and  many  of  its  necessities  as  well.  Such  a  situation  is 
a  source  of  constant  strain  on  the  social  bond,  and  a  seri- 
ous barrier  in. the  way  of  social  progress. 

The  second  phase  of  the  problem  confronting  the  busi- 
ness vocations  is  concerned  with  a  change  in  the  direc- 
tion of  the  conflict  involved.  Conflict  there 
flicT^rafiabk"  w^  continue  to  be,  for  a  large  part  of  the 
satisfaction  in  business  comes  from  the 
game  itself.  But  the  better  part,  at  least,  of  the  impulse 
that  prompts  to  combat  can  be  satisfied  in  other  ways 
than  in  slaughtering  one's  competitor  hi  the  commercial 
arena.  Man's  best  powers  are  yet  challenged  by  proj- 
ects for  more  efficiently  utilizing  natural  forces  and  re- 
sources, and  he  needs  still  to  grapple  with  the  difficulties 
involved  in  the  better  organization  and  management  of 
business  enterprises.  Business  energies  directed  in  these 
lines  will  still  result  in  pitting  man  against  man,  but  the 
conflict  will  be  indirect,  and  neither  will  need  to  fail  in 
order  that  the  other  may  succeed.  Competition  in  these 
directions  results  in  the  enrichment  of  society  and  the 
impoverishment  of  no  one. 

The  educational  aim  cannot  ignore  the  business  voca- 
tions, for  their  relation  to  the  social  programme  is  very 
vital  and  their  functions  very  important, 
tionaiatnf"        Every  individual  is  in  some  degree  a  busi- 
must  include       ness  man.     He  must  help  organize  and 
vocations.          carry  on  the  business  of  a  home,  a  shop,  a 
farm,  a  church,  or  a  state.    Therefore  gen- 
eral education  should  take  into  account  the  business  side 
of  social  activity  and  furnish  training  in  the  elements  of 
business  law,  the  forms  and  usages  of  commercial  paper, 


104         SOCIAL  PRINCIPLES  OF  EDUCATION 

and  the  technique  of  ordinary  business  operations  such 
as  are  required  by  those  engaged  in  other  than  business 
occupations. 

The  principles  underlying  the  organization  and  man- 
agement of  business  enterprises,  and  the  technique  of 
Business  *ne  activities  involved  in  them,  are  becom- 

training  in  ing  well  enough  known  so  that  we  are  ap- 
proximating a  science  of  business.  This 
means  that  those  who  are  to  enter  upon  business  vocations 
should  have  the  opportunity  for  special  educational  prep- 
aration in  these  lines.  Business  education  has  been 
brought  into  some  degree  of  disrepute  in  this  country 
through  the  so-called  "business  colleges,"  hundreds  of 
which  purport  to  give  a  complete  business  education  in 
six  months.  The  most  that  these  schools  can  do  is  to 
offer  instruction  in  the  incidentals  of  business;  that  is, 
in  the  details  of  business  forms  and  book-keeping.  While 
all  this  is  necessary  for  the  business  man,  this  much  alone 
is  but  a  training  for  clerks  and  book-keepers.  An  en- 
couraging tendency  is  just  now  observable,  however,  in 
the  opening  of  "departments  of  commerce"  in  various 
of  the  leading  American  universities,  where  the  underly- 
ing principles  as  well  as  the  method  of  business  may  be 
studied. 

IV.    The  Technological  Pursuits 

The  technological  pursuits  possess  a  different,  if  not  a 
higher,  type  of  interest  than  the  business  vocations.  It 
Nature  of  the  *s  ^ere  ^a^  invention  emerges,  and  that 
technological  force  and  cunning  are  applied  to  material 
things  and  not  to  men.  The  technological 
worker  sets  his  task  at  mastering  the  materials  and  forces 
of  nature  and  subjecting  them  to  his  will.  He  is  not  in- 


VOCATIONAL  MODES  OF  EXPERIENCE       105 

terested  in  theories  except  as  they  lead  to  practical  results. 
He  fastens  upon  some  bit  of  truth  in  the  form  of  a  law 
or  hypothesis  discovered  by  the  scientist,  applies  it  to 
the  products  of  mine,  forest,  and  field,  and  a  new  machine 
or  a  new  process  is  the  result.  In  order  successfully  to 
carry  on  his  work,  he  develops  a  remarkable  degree  of 
skill  and  refinement  of  technique.  And  where  his  hand, 
because  of  its  natural  limitations,  is  unable  to  carry  out 
his  wish,  he  just  constructs  another  instrument  and  turns 
the  work  over  to  it. 

On  the  social  side  the  contribution  of  the  technologist 

is  in  the  direction  of  making  our  world  more  habitable. 

The  contri-         The  discoveries  of  science  are  applied  to  the 

button  of  the       vocations,  making  them  more  productive, 

o  ogist.       an(j  mvention  nO£  oniy  makes  work  easier, 

but  also  supplies  many  appliances  that  add  immeasurably 
to  the  comfort  and  breadth  of  life.  The  technological 
worker,  while  he  is  dependent  on  the  industrial  vocations 
for  his  materials,  on  the  business  vocations  for  the  finan- 
cing of  his  projects,  and  on  the  scientist  for  much  of  the 
knowledge  that  he  utilizes,  is  the  actual  and  immediate 
creator  of  the  material  side  of  civilization.  It  is  from  his 
hands  directly  that  we  receive  the  finished  product  that 
adds  to  our  convenience  or  luxury.  It  is  through  his 
work  that  electricity  is  harnessed  and  sent  on  our  errands, 
or  made  to  light  cities  and  run  our  cars;  that  Niagara  is 
belted  to  dynamos  and  made  to  become  a  source  of  power 
as  well  as  of  wonder.  Steam  is  made  into  a  slave,  and 
the  ocean  becomes  a  highway.  Buildings  are  erected  that 
tower  a  tenth  of  a  mile  in  the  air  and  house  comfortably 
and  hygienically  under  one  roof  more  people  than  live 
in  an  average  village.  California  is  brought  nearer  to 
New  York  than  Boston  was  to  Philadelphia  in  the  older 


106         SOCIAL  PRINCIPLES  OF  EDUCATION 

day,  and  the  whole  habitable  world  is  welded  into  one 
great  family  by  the  telegraph,  the  cable,  and  the  news- 
paper. 

In  return  for  the  materials  that  he  receives  from  the 
industrial  workers,  the  technologist  originates  inventions 
and  machines  that  multiply  many  times  the  efficiency  of 
industrial  labor.  He  gives  back  to  the  scientist  in  return 
for  what  he  borrows  from  him  the  telescope,  the  micro- 
scope, and  a  thousand  other  machines  and  instruments 
indispensable  in  scientific  research.  In  like  manner  this 
debt  is  paid  to  each  of  the  vocations. 

So  important  has  technology  become  in  our  modern 
life  that  education  has  seen  the  necessity  of  incorporating 
Technology  ^  m  ^ts  aijn-  The  highly  specialized  skill 
and  the  edu-  and  trained  technique  required  in  tech- 
"^  nology  cannot  be  secured  without  specially 
organized  schools  possessing  extensive  equipment  and 
affording  expert  instruction.  Lack  of  technological  edu- 
cation leaves  a  nation  at  a  disadvantage  in  two  important 
particulars;  first,  the  lack  of  skilled  workmen  makes  it 
impossible  to  compete  successfully  with  the  foreign  na- 
tions which  have  trained  workmen;  second,  lack  of  skill 
and  efficiency  in  production  results  in  waste  of  natural 
resources. 

The  United  States,  possessing  seemingly  inexhaustible 

resources,  and  capable  of  producing  great  wealth  with 

little  effort,  has  been  slower  than  Europe  in 

states'behind     seeing  the  need  of  the  technological  as  one 

in  techno-          of  the  aspects  of  public  education.     Ger- 

trSning.  many,   England,   and  France,   being   less 

favored  than  our  own  country,  and  having 

a  denser  population,  have  been  forced  to  use  every  means 

of  increasing  the  efficiency  of  production.     Hence,  in 


VOCATIONAL  MODES  OF  EXPERIENCE       107 

these  countries  technological  education  is  much  farther 
advanced  than  with  us.  The  indications  at  present  are 
that  the  American  people  are  awakening  to  the  part 
that  technology  plays  in  the  social  process  and  will  pro- 
vide for  this  type  of  education. 
% 

V.     The  Scientific  Pursuits 

The  scientific  pursuits  are  dictated  by  still  another  type 
of  interests.  In  these  the  play  of  mind  has  come  to  be 
Nature  of  an  en(^  m  &$&•  Genius  and  cunning  are 

scientific  pitted  against  the  Great  Unknown.    The 

universe  of  law  and  matter  challenges  the 
mind.  Man  accepts  the  challenge  and  is  slowly  but 
surely  unravelling  the  secrets  of  nature.  The  scientist 
as  such  is  not  concerned  with  the  practical  application 
of  the  truths  he  discovers.  To  be  sure,  he  knows  that  all 
truth  is  valuable  and  in  the  end  related  to  human  experi- 
ence, but  he  leaves  the  application  to  others.  Truth  for 
its  own  sake  becomes  his  motto.  Research  and  investi- 
gation become  a  game,  with  some  new  bit  of  truth  the 
stakes.  The  "pure  sciences"  are  the  result. 

In  a  less  highly  differentiated  society,  the  scientific 
pursuits,  concerned  as  they  are  with  the  accumulation  of 
truth  rather  than  with  the  question  of  its  bearing  on  the 
immediate  affairs  of  men,  would  have  little  direct  value. 
But  with  our  present  degree  of  differentiation,  there 
always  stands  ready  the  technological  and  the  business 
vocations  waiting  to  make  serviceable  to  the  immediate 
needs  of  society  what  the  scientist  discovers. 
Contributions  The  va-lue  °f  tne  contributions  of  the  sci- 
of  science  to  entists  to  social  advancement  cannot  be 

al  progress.     computed       Not  fa  least  Qf  the  contribu- 
tions of  science  is  the  method  that  it  embodies.    The  sci- 


108         SOCIAL  PRINCIPLES  OF  EDUCATION 

entist  is  pre-eminently  an  investigator.  He  seeks  first 
of  all  the  facts  and  desires  them  at  first  hand.  He  sub- 
jects all  authority  and  tradition  to  examination  and 
test.  He  undertakes  to  prove  all  things  that  lie  within 
his  field  and  holds  fast  only  to  that  which  he  can  prove. 
This  method  and  attitude  have  come  in  large  degree  to 
prevail  in  all  lines  of  modern  thought.  Nothing  is  too 
trivial  or  too  sacred  to  be  subjected  to  investigation  and 
verification.  This  critical  spirit  has  undoubtedly  re- 
sulted in  some  loss  of  reverence  and  respect  for  many  of 
the  older  concepts;  on  the  other  hand,  it  has  made  the 
concepts  that  have  stood  the  test  more  vital  in  relation 
to  experience. 

Science  has  freed  us  from  the  reign  of  superstition. 
Through  the  discovery  that  all  nature  has  been  evolved 
Science  frees  an(^  continues  to  operate  in  accordance  with 
from  super-  all-inclusive  law,  we  no  longer  believe  in 

stition.  •  i 

signs,  omens,  and  portents;  hence,  we  are 
no  longer  under  their  tyranny.  Eclipses  are  not  animals 
eating  up  the  moon  and  to  be  frightened  away  by  much 
noise  and  shouting;  pestilence  and  disease  are  not  a  visi- 
tation of  Providence  indicating  His  displeasure  with  our 
conduct,  but  are  a  result  of  our  carelessness  and  diso- 
bedience to  natural  law;  poverty  and  crime  are  not  to 
be  taken  as  a  matter  of  course,  but  are  the  result  of  dis- 
coverable and  in  some  degree  preventable  causes. 

Through  the  discoveries  of  the  scientist,  the  length 
of  human  life  is  being  greatly  lengthened  and  the  rav- 
Science  aSes  °f  sickness  and  disease  much  reduced, 

contributes         thereby    effecting    a    great    saving,   both 

economically  and  socially,  and  also  in 
unnecessary  sorrow  and  suffering.  Science  teaches  us 
how  to  conserve  our  natural  resources;  how  to  get  the 
most  out  of  the  soil,  the  mine,  and  the  forest  without 


VOCATIONAL  MODES  OF  EXPERIENCE       109 

exhausting  their  treasures;  and  how  to  manufacture  our 
products  with  the  least  waste  of  material  and  energy. 
It  is  science  that  is  giving  us  mastery  of  our  environ- 
ment, and  hence  control  over  the  processes  of  our  own 
experience. 

Science  has  come  to  play  a  large  part  in  the  educational 

aim.    No  country  has  to-day  a  school  curriculum  that 

,      .  does  not  provide  for  science  as  one  of  the 

The  educa-  •          •         •         i-m  .,         . 

tionai  aim  branches  of  study.  While  science  has  there- 
responsive  to  fore  become  a  part  of  general  education. 

science 

this  does  not  mean  that  the  schools  shall 
train  to  the  vocation  of  the  scientist.  The  scientist  re- 
quires a  high  degree  of  skill  and  the  technique  of  his 
special  field.  He  must  have  thoroughly  at  his  command 
the  discoveries  and  inventions  applying  to  his  work  and 
must  possess  a  broad  and  accurate  fund  of  information 
bearing  upon  his  problems.  It  is  therefore  evident  that 
the  scientist  must  be  trained  in  a  specially  fitted  school 
or  department  which  is  fully  equipped  to  put  him  into 
possession  of  these  requisites. 

VI.     The  Professional  Pursuits 

The  professional  pursuits  belong  to  a  relatively  ad- 
vanced stage  of  social  development.  They  have  their 
Place  of  origin  in  the  necessity  for  meeting  crises 

professional  in  experience.  Primitive  man  did  not 
trouble  himself  about  laws  of  hygiene, 
medicine,  or  surgery  until  he  met  with  an  accident,  or 
until  sickness  came;  then  he  sent  for  the  medicine  man. 
Similarly,  when  the  run  of  experience  was  smooth  and 
undisturbed  by  trouble,  man  felt  himself  sufficient  in 
his  own  strength;  but  when  crushing  sorrow  came  upon 
him,  or  eternity  opened  out  before  him,  he  sent  for  the 


110         SOCIAL  PRINCIPLES  OF  EDUCATION 

minister  or  the  priest.  The  lawyer  was  employed  only 
when  one  was  caught  in  the  meshes  of  the  law.  The 
teacher  was  called  in  chiefly  to  prepare  his  pupil  to  meet 
some  emergency,  like  preparing  for  a  vocation,  acquaint- 
ing oneself  with  the  capital  laws  of  the  land  or  with  the 
doctrines  of  the  church. 

Both  society  and  the  professional  class,  however,  are 
coming  to  see  that  the  highest  function  of  these  vocations 
Changing  atti-  is  *°  prepare  so  to  meet  the  various  expe- 
tude  toward  ricnces  of  life  that  the  great  crises  shall 
not  arise  as  threatening  catastrophies.  The 
physician  is  coming  to  conceive  his  function  as  being  far 
more  that  of  teaching  people  how  to  keep  well  than  to  cure 
them  after  they  have  become  sick.  He  sees  the  greatest 
victories  ahead  for  his  profession  in  the  field  of  hygiene 
and  preventive  medicine,  rather  than  in  remedial  medi- 
cine. The  minister  and  the  priest  are  no  longer  thought 
of  as  a  source  of  help  when  death  threatens,  but  as  moral 
and  religious  leaders  who  shall  so  teach  to  live  that  sorrow 
and  death  may  no  longer  be  the  great  crises  to  which  the 
individual  is  unable  to  adjust  himself.  The  lawyer  does 
not  find  it  his  chief  business  to  plead  cases  in  court,  but  so 
to  help  in  the  making  and  interpreting  of  wise  laws,  and 
so  to  counsel  his  clients  that  lawsuits  shall  not  be  neces- 
sary. The  work  of  the  teacher  is  coming  to  be  conceived 
as  the  training  of  his  pupils  in  the  habit  of  meeting  and 
adjusting  themselves  to  crises  and  emergencies  so  that 
they  may  develop  the  power  to  control  their  own  experi- 
ence under  these  conditions. 

Professions  From  these  considerations  it  follows  that 

require  special     the  professional  class  must  be  a  class   of 

specialists,  both  as  to  their  functions  and 

their  training  and  methods.   They  are  leaders,  and  their 


VOCATIONAL   MODES  OF  EXPERIENCE       111 

education  must  be  of  a  highly  concentrated  and  intense 
character.  And,  in  order  that  this  may  not  make  them 
narrow,  this  specialized  education  must  have  as  its  foun- 
dation a  broad  and  thorough  general  education. 

The  educational  aim  must  include  the  professional  vo- 
cations.   The  carrying  out  of  this  aim  requires  special 
schools  of  very  high  type.    This  demand  is 

The  educa-  -ulu  :•     a          ruir 

tionai  aim  being  met  by  the  organization  of  schools  of 
includes  the  medicine,  law,  theology,  and  education  in 

professions.  .  .  ,  •*    -, 

connection  with  most  of  the  great  universi- 
ties. The  profession  of  education  is  the  newest  of  the  pro- 
fessions, if  indeed  it  should  even  now  be  called  a  profession. 
There  are  some  reasons  for  thinking  that  teaching  can 
never  be  as  closely  organized  and  highly  specialized  a 
profession  as  medicine,  law,  or  theology.  Among  these 
are  the  uncertainty  of  tenure  of  position  and  the  meagre- 
ness  of  compensation.  Another  is  the  large  proportion  of 
women  in  the  vocation,  most  of  whom  remain  only  a  brief 
time,  and  hence  can  never  catch  the  professional  spirit. 
Yet  the  work  of  the  teacher  is,  on  the  whole,  becoming 
more  standardized,  the  professional  spirit  is  developing, 
and  education  is  gradually  earning  the  right  to  be  classed 
as  a  profession. 

VII.     The  Vocation  of  the  Artist 

The  artist's  vocation  deals  not  with  the  creation  of 
values,  but  with  their  expression.    The  artist  must  first 
of  all  be  a  man  of  vision,  one  who  is  able 
to  weigh  values,  and  he  must  then  possess 
the  skill  that  will  enable  him  to  put  these 
values  into  simple  and  beautiful  form.     He  looks  out 
upon  life,  the  manifold  life  of  the  race,  and  seizes  upon 


112         SOCIAL  PRINCIPLES  OF  EDUCATION 

the  greatest  concepts,  the  most  vital  experiences,  the 
strongest  motives.  These  he  crystallizes  in  a  picture,  a 
statue,  an  epic,  a  cathedral,  or  an  oratorio.  Through 
the  clearness  of  his  vision  and  the  skill  of  his  technique 
he  is  able  to  express  his  ideal  so  clearly  that  even  he  who 
runs  may  read.  In  this  way  the  great  concept  or  motive, 
or  whatever  has  constituted  the  ideal  of  the  artist,  is 
brought  clearly  to  the  social  consciousness  and  made  the 
common  property  of  the  race. 

The  artist  is  pre-eminently  a  seeker  after  truth,  beauty, 
and  goodness  in  their  highest  form.  He  subjects  the  ex- 
The  artist  an  periences  of  men  to  analysis  and  sets  out 
influential  certain  phases  to  stand  as  types  for  man  in 
his  striving.  He  selects  from  among  many 
values  those  that  he  conceives  as  most  worth  while. 
These  he  is  able  to  emphasize  by  clothing  them  in  forms 
of  beauty  and  harmony,  to  whose  appeal  man  always 
responds.  The  artist  is  therefore  an  influential  leader 
and  teacher.  Upon  him  rests  a  great  responsibility. 
Raphael's  ideal  of  motherhood  and  childhood  has  set  the 
standard  for  millions  who  have  looked  upon  the  "  Sis- 
tine  Madonna";  and  Leonardo's  "The  Last  Supper" 
reveals  as  much  of  the  character  of  Jesus  as  do  the 
Gospels. 

Artists  of  the  highest  type,  like  other  geniuses,  are  un- 
doubtedly born,  and  not  made.  Yet  there  is  much  of  the 
Relation  of  ar^  impulse  in  all  of  us,  and  the  develop- 
art  to  the  edu-  ment  of  this  impulse  should  form  an  im- 

cational  aim.  r   .1  r       i         ,• 

portant  part  of  the  concern  of  education. 
Not  only  is  this  necessary  from  the  fact  that  an  opportu- 
nity to  express  the  artistic  impulse  at  the  right  time  would 
undoubtedly  discover  to  themselves  many  excellent  ar- 
tists who  otherwise  would  never  know  of  their  powers, 


VOCATIONAL  MODES  OF  EXPERIENCE       113 

but  also  because  all  need  to  cultivate  a  knowledge  of  art 
and  an  appreciation  of  its  values.  While  the  public 
schools  cannot  teach  the  highly  perfected  technique  of 
the  artist,  they  can  cultivate  the  power  to  understand 
the  work  of  the  artist  and  the  desire  to  express  its  great 
ideals  in  their  own  experience. 


REFERENCES 

Bucher,  Industrial  Evolution;  Carlton,  Education  and  Industrial 
Evolution;  Davidson,  Education  of  the  Wage-earners;  Daven- 
port, Education  for  Efficiency;  Dopp,  The  Place  of  Industries  in 
Elementary  Education;  Gillette,  Vocational  Training;  Hall, 
Youth,  chs.  Ill,  IV;  Haney,  Art  Education  in  the  Schools  of  the 
United  States;  Hanus,  Beginnings  of  Industrial  Education;  Her- 
rick,  Commercial  Training;  Ward  (editor),  Social  Ministry,  chs. 
V,  VI;  Annals  of  the  American  Academy  (number  on  Industrial 
Training,),  vol.  33. 


CHAPTER  VII 
EDUCATION  AND  AVOCATIONAL  MODES  OF  EXPERIENCE 

7.     The  Place  of  Avocations  in  the  Social  Process 

In  apposition  with  vocational  modes  of  experience 
must  be  placed  the  avocational.  As  society  grows  in 
wealth  and  economic  pressure  lessens,  leis- 
ure  begins  to  play  a  more  important  part 
in  the  social  process.  Avocations  are  as 
much  a  matter  of  social  concern  as  vocations.  For  it  is 
almost,  if  not  quite,  as  high  an  art  to  use  one's  leisure  time 
well  in  his  avocations  as  to  employ  his  work  time  well 
in  his  vocation! 

To  prove  the  truth  of  this  statement,  one  has  but  to 
witness  the  large  number  of  people  to  whom  freedom 
importance  of  from  toil  means  liberty  for  the  indulgence 
avocational  of  low  tastes  and  bestial  impulses  in  some 
standards.  sensual  orgy.  Such  a  use  of  leisure  as  this 
is  a  menace  to  society,  for  it  breeds  debauchery  and 
crime;  it  is  a  menace  to  the  individual,  for,  instead  of 
recuperating  his  strength  and  renewing  his  courage,  it 
saps  his  energy,  lowers  his  tastes,  and  sends  him  back  to 
his  work  depleted  physically  and  depressed  mentally. 

Nor  is  the  unwise  and  unprofitable  use  of  recreation 
time  confined  to  this  class  alone.  Many  persons  to  whom 
Leisure  often  suc^  *ow  f°rms  °f  amusement  would  be  re- 
unprofitabiy  pelling,  fail,  nevertheless,  to  employ  their 
leisure  from  work  in  such  a  way  as  to  re- 
store reduced  physical  and  mental  power.  It  is  entirely 

114 


AVOCATIONAL  MODES  OF  EXPERIENCE      115 

possible  for  diversions,  wholly  innocent  in  themselves  so 
far  as  moral  wrong  is  concerned,  to  result  in  a  drain  upon 
nervous  energy,  or  in  a  dissatisfaction  with  the  routine 
of  daily  work,  and  thereby  prove  a  hindrance  instead  of 
a  help  to  the  individual. 

The  difficulty  cannot  be  solved  by  depriving  of  the 
time  for  leisure.  The  impulse  to  recreation  and  play  is 
impulse  to  deep-seated  in  the  race,  and  the  individual 
play  deep-  cannot  be  robbed  of  the  opportunity  for  its 
expression  without  grave  injury  to  his  de- 
velopment. The  prematurely  old  children,  with  their  dull 
and  lifeless  faces,  who  may  be  seen  pouring  from  the  fac- 
tories where  child  labor  is  employed,  are  tragic  proof  of 
this  statement.  If  we  trace  back  the  history  of  the  dull 
and  brutish  men  of  to-day,  we  almost  invariably  find  that 
they  were  the  playless  children  of  yesterday. 

The  physical  necessity  for  recreation  is  indisputable. 
The  child  needs  to  play  in  order  to  develop  his  brain,  pro- 
Physical  mote  bodily  growth  and  vigor,  and  secure 
necessity  for  muscular  control  and  co-ordination.  His 
only  way  of  gaining  energy  is  through  spend- 
ing it,  and  his  only  way  of  becoming  master  of  his  body 
for  the  more  serious  business  of  life  is  through  using  all 
its  powers  in  the  unrestricted  activity  of  play. 

The  adult  needs  the  change  and  rest  that  come  through 
avocations  hardly  less  than  the  child.  The  fagged  brain 
The  adult  an<^  listless  organism  are  the  result  of  run- 
needs  ning  too  long  in  one  groove,  of  playing  too 
steadily  upon  one  string.  It  is  not  work,  but 
unremitting  work,  that  kills.  If  between  the  ages  of 
twenty  and  seventy  years  a  man  is  to  work  forty  years 
and  rest  or  play  ten,  he  should  not  work  steadily  from 
the  time  he  is  twenty  until  he  is  sixty  and  then  drop  all 


116         SOCIAL  PRINCIPLES  OF  EDUCATION 

occupation  and  spend  the  remainder  of  his  days  in  idle- 
ness, being,  as  Browning  puts  it,  one 

"Whose  lot  is  cast 

With  those  who  watch,  but  work  no  more, 
Who  gaze  on  life,  but  live  no  more." 

The  better  plan  is  to  distribute  the  rest-time  of  life 
throughout  the  working  period  as  recreation  and  thereby 
retain  the  ability  and  desire  to  follow  one's  vocation  till 
the  end. 

The  mental  necessity  for  play  and  recreation  is  no  less 
pressing  than  the  physical.  Probably  the  most  rapid 
Mental  progress  made  by  the  child  in  his  mental 

necessity  for  development  is  during  the  play  years  before 
he  has  reached  school  age.  Play,  which 
has  been  looked  upon  as  an  incident,  or  even  as  a  neces- 
sary evil  in  the  life  of  the  child,  is  one  of  the  most  educa- 
tive factors.  Imagination,  memory,  invention,  judgment, 
and  many  other  of  the  mental  powers  are  never  more  vi- 
tally and  fruitfully  trained  than  in  the  activities  of  plays 
and  games.  Inhibition,  self-control,  and  co-operation 
are  in  constant  demand  on  the  playground.  Here  also 
crises  are  met  and  problems  solved  that  are  closely  typ- 
ical of  the  more  serious  crises  and  problems  of  later  forms 
of  experience. 

Besides  the  influence  of  play  in  genetic  development, 
its  purely  recreative  function  must  not  be  overlooked. 
Necessity  The  mmd  demands  change  of  activity  and 
for  relief  environment.  It  must  get  out  of  the  rou- 

routine.  ^ng  Q£  ^  faHy  work,  no  matter  how  inter- 
esting this  may  be,  or  stagnation  and  a  decline  of  mental 
power  inevitably  result.  It  is  not  hard  thinking,  but  con- 


AVOCATIONAL  MODES  OF  EXPERIENCE      117 

tinuous  thinking  along  the  one  line  that  drains  mental 
power.  Not  inactivity,  but  intellectual  and  emotional 
change  is  needed;  and  not  change  of  thought  alone,  but 
also  a  change  enlivening  the  mood.  To  work  without  de- 
pletion of  power,  a  certain  amount  of  tonic  in  the  form 
of  fun  and  enjoyment  must  be  had. 

Work  in  most  of  its  forms  is  in  some  degree  social  in 
its  activities,  but  it  is  too  serious  and  concentrated  when 
Social  n°t  interspersed  with  play  to  yield  the  best 

necessity  results  in  the  training  of  the  social  impulses. 

It  is  in  the  recreative  activities  that  the 
social  nature  finds  its  fullest  and  freest  expression.  Only 
when  work  is  laid  aside  and  people  are  mingling  in  their 
avocations  are  the  social  powers  at  their  best. 

The  child's  first  touch  with  the  wider  social  order 
outside  his  home  is  through  the  medium  of  the  play 
Socializing  activities.  Play  is  the  greatest  socializing 
influence  influence  in  his  life  at  this  stage  of  his 

development.  Through  play  he  learns  the 
limitation  of  his  personal  will  and  power  as  opposed  to 
the  social  will.  The  force  of  public  opinion  is  felt,  and 
the  child  gradually  comes  to  conceive  a  social  order  vastly 
higher  and  more  powerful  than  himself.  Yet,  through 
the  common  activities  of  play,  he  feels  himself  a  part  of 
this  social  order  and  participates  in  it.  He  finds  himself 
necessary  at  certain  points.  He  sometimes  takes  the  ini- 
tiative and  plans  and  commands.  He  is  learning  to  lead 
as  well  as  to  follow.  Out  of  all  these  experiences  the  group 
spirit  is  having  its  rise  and  the  concept  of  the  common 
good  is  taking  hold.  Loyalty  develops,  and  the  child  is 
occasionally  not  only  willing  but  glad  to  sacrifice  himself 
for  the  success  of  his  group  or  team.  The  social  bond 
grips  him,  and  he  learns  that  the  individual  must  often 


118         SOCIAL  PRINCIPLES  OF  EDUCATION 

give  way  for  the  larger  good.  The  child's  concept  of 
society  is  broadening,  and  he  is  coming  to  conceive  him- 
self as  a  part  of  the  greater  social  process.  He  is  becom- 
ing socialized  through  his  play  activities. 

But  it  is  not  the  child  alone  that  needs  the  recreative 
activities.  From  one  standpoint  the  adult  requires  them 
Danger  of  perhaps  even  more.  Work  tends  to  sober 
losing  the  the  individual  and  make  him  too  solemn 

play  spirit.  and  serious.  The  lighter  and  more  blithe- 
some moods  drop  out  and  are  lost,  and  in  their  stead  come 
a  heaviness  and  dulness  of  emotional  tone,  and  with  this 
change  we  feel  "that  there  hath  past  away  a  glory  from 
the  earth."  The  social  impulses  have  much  to  do  with 
keeping  the  life  fresh  and  spontaneous,  and  they  are  sure 
to  atrophy  if  not  used.  Many  people  become  so  immersed 
in  their  work  that  they  forget  how  to  play,  and  can  take 
no  pleasure  in  any  form  of  avocation.  They  even  forget 
how  to  rest,  and  can  only  work,  eat,  and  sleep,  and  then 
repeat  the  process  until  their  overstrained  powers  break 
down  and  they  must  quit.  Such  persons  miss  some  of 
the  richest  and  most  valuable  experiences  of  life  and  pre- 
pare themselves  for  a  premature  and  unhappy  old  age, 
lacking  in  interests  and  barren  in  resources. 

The  moral  necessity  for  avocations  is  as  great  as  the 
physical,  mental,  or  social.  Play  is  a  great  incentive  to 
Moral  a  correct  life  and  a  strong  antidote  for  im- 

necessity  morality  or  delinquent  tendencies.  Mor- 

bid and  unhealthy  states  of  mind  give  way 
before  the  counteracting  influence  of  play.  Moral  dan- 
gers which  threaten  youth  in  periods  of  leisure  and 
physical  inactivity  are  greatly  lessened,  if  not  wholly  re- 
moved, through  the  interest,  enthusiasm,  and  physical 
weariness  accompanying  vigorous  play. 


AVOCATIONAL  MODES  OF  EXPERIENCE      119 

Many  cities  have  found  that  boys'  gangs  of  predatory 
or  criminal  nature  are  readily  transformed  into  peaceful 
Play  as  a  an(^  emcient  base-ball  and  foot-ball  teams, 

remedy  for  Criminal  gangs  of  boys  that  have  terrorized 

linquency.  certam  parts  of  some  of  our  cities  have  soon 
been  eliminated  by  the  simple  expedient  of  supplying  the 
boys  with  ample  opportunity  for  games  and  amusements. 
A  large  proportion  of  our  criminals  enter  upon  a  life  of 
crime  through  misdirected  energies  and  impulses,  rather 
than  from  innate  criminal  tendencies.  Cities  are  learning 
that  it  is  both  wiser  and  cheaper  to  put  money  into  public 
playgrounds,  amusement  parks,  and  recreation  centres 
than  into  criminal  courts,  reform  schools,  and  peniten- 
tiaries. 

Play  is  not,  as  many  have  thought,  antagonistic  to 
work.  The  play  impulse  and  the  work  impulse  are  very 
Play  not  closely  related,  and  each  is  the  complement 

antagonistic  of  the  other.  The  play  activities  are  the 
natural  and  necessary  foundation  for  the 
work  activities.  No  one  who  does  not  know  what  it  is 
to  work  can  fully  enjoy  and  profit  by  play;  on  the  other 
hand,  one  who  has  never  known  what  it  means  to  throw 
the  whole  self  into  free  and  unrestricted  play  will  find  it 
hard  to  bring  all  of  his  powers  to  bear  upon  his  work.  It 
is  in  play  that  the  inclividual  first  and  most  naturally 
learns  to  bring  the  entire  self  into  action,  to  use  the  last 
measure  of  effort  and  will-power  of  which  he  is  capable, 
pia  trains  Play  trains  to  the  endurance  of  fatigue  and 

to  qualities  the  bearing  of  pain  and  hardship.  It  accus- 
toms  the  individual  to  be  generous  in  a  vic- 
tory and  strong  in  defeat.  It  requires  per- 
sonal initiative,  quickness  of  decision,  and  self-reliance. 
And  these  qualities,which  are  so  constantly  demanded  and 


120         SOCIAL  PRINCIPLES  OF  EDUCATION 

so  effectively  developed  through  play,  are  the  ones  most 
needed  in  vocational  life.  Nor  will  proper  play  create  a 
distaste  for  work  or  impatience  with  its  requirements; 
it  will  rather  send  the  individual  back  to  his  vocation, 
not  only  with  recuperated  powers,  but  also  with  new  zest 
and  enthusiasm  for  his  work. 


II.     Classes  of  Avocations 

Avocations  follow  almost  as  many  lines  as  there  are 
varieties  of  human  interests.  It  is  therefore  a  hopeless 
The  many  tas^  to  undertake  any  complete  and  sys- 
varietiesof  tematic  classification  of  them.  It  will  be 
serviceable  in  our  present  study,  however, 
to  note  a  few  of  the  most  fundamental  groups.  Avoca- 
tions may  be  roughly  grouped  into  four  great  classes: 
(i)  physical,  or  those  growing  out  of  the  instinct  for  con- 
flict, and  involving  a  large  measure  of  physical  prowess, 
strength,  or  skill;  (2)  mental,  or  those  involving  a  con- 
test of  mind;  (3)  social,  or  those  resting  on  the  social 
impulse,  and  including  the  various  social  amusements 
and  diversions;  and  (4)  incidental,  or  those  resting  on 
some  personal  whim,  fad,  or  fancy,  and  including  any 
line  of  activity  undertaken  for  diversion. 

It  is,  of  course,  evident  that  these  groups  are  not 
mutually  exclusive.  Many  of  the  physical  avocations 
require  great  concentration  of  attention,  mental  quick- 
ness, and  acumen.  Mental  games  usually  involve  social 
commingling.  The  social  avocations  often  demand  much 
physical  activity.  And  the  incidental  avocations  may 
involve  any  or  all  of  the  others. 

The  ages  of  struggle  through  which  man  has  passed 
in  his  evolution  have  left  deeply  imbedded  in  him  the 


A  VOCATIONAL  MODES  OF  EXPERIENCE      121 

love  of  physical  conflict.   Especially  when  young  he  craves 
the  opportunity  to  exert  his  strength  and  to  show  his 

physical  prowess  and  skill.  When  there  is 
avocations.  added  to  this  the  competitive  element,  the 

desire  to  beat  an  opponent,  and  also  the 
social  element,  or  the  desire  for  the  plaudits  of  the  crowd, 
there  is  almost  no  end  to  the  amount  of  interest  and  en- 
thusiasm that  is  aroused.  And  even  when  youth  has 
passed  and  the  impulse  to  physical  exertion  is  no  longer 
insistent,  the  desire  to  watch  others  in  games  involving 
combat  is  still  very  strong.  Hence  it  is  that  base-ball 
and  foot-ball  games  between  professional  teams  often  call 
together  thousands  of  spectators  who  are  not  especially 
interested  in  one  or  the  other  side,  but  who  enjoy  the 
battle.  So  high  does  this  combative  spirit  run  that  the 
leading  foot-ball  player  or  the  champion  athlete  is  a  far 
more  noted  man  with  many  persons  than  the  leading 
scholar  in  the  land.  In  intercollegiate  athletic  contests 
the  enthusiasm  reaches  such  a  point  that  classes  are  some- 
times suspended  for  a  day,  and  more  often  might  as  well 
be,  in  order  to  celebrate  a  victory  over  an  opponent. 

The  problem  of  relating  the  physical  avocations  to  the 
educational  aim  is  a  double  one.  The  first  aspect  of  the 
„  ,  ^  .  problem  is  to  cultivate  and  keep  alive  in  the 

Relation  of  .    .  . 

physical  individual  the  desire  for  personal  partici- 

avocationsto  pation  in  physical  games.  We  have  been 
accused  by  the  English  of  being  a  nation  of 
great  patrons  of  physical  sports,  but  poor  sportsmen 
ourselves  in  physical  contests.  It  is  easy  to  assemble 
almost  any  number  of  people  to  witness  an  interesting 
game,  but  most  of  the  onlookers  never  play  any  games 
themselves.  They  attend  the  game  chiefly  to  satisfy 
their  love  of  conflict,  and,  while  they  may  be  known  as 


122         SOCIAL  PRINCIPLES  OF  EDUCATION 

great  devotees  of  physical  sports,  may  themselves  be 
actually  suffering  for  the  want  of  exercise.  We  are  rather 
given  as  a  people  to  hiring  a  set  of  professionals  to  play 
for  us  while  we  sit  lazily  by  and  watch  them.  It  would 
unquestionably  be  greatly  better  if  our  sports  could  be 
kept  on  an  amateur  basis  and  professional  athletics 
reduced  to  a  minimum  or  altogether  eliminated. 

The  recent  movement  toward  introducing  a  broader  and 
more  diversified  line  of  physical  training  and  athletics 
Physical  mto  tne  scno°ls  and  colleges  has  tended 

training  and  to  relieve  this  phase  of  the  problem  some- 
what. Physical  training  and  participation 
in  some  line  of  athletics  are  now  required  of  all  students 
during  at  least  half  of  the  college  course  in  most  of  the 
higher  institutions  in  the  country.  The  immediate  bene- 
fits resulting  to  health  and  vigor  from  general  partici- 
pation in  physical  avocations  cannot  be  overestimated, 
and  the  less  direct  but  no  less  important  effects  in  devel- 
oping a  personal  interest  in  active  participation  in  games 
and  sports  is  as  great. 

The  second  phase  of  the  problem  has  to  do  with  main- 
taining a  proper  balance  between  physical  sports  and  the 
Maintaining  scholastic  activities  of  the  school.  It  is  true 
a  proper  that  all  reputable  schools  now  have  a  schol- 

arship requirement  imposed  on  students 
who  desire  to  participate  in  interschool  contests.  In  spite 
of  this  fact,  however,  it  is  to  be  feared  that  the  athletic 
spirit  sometimes  predominates  over  the  scholastic  spirit 
in  schools.  It  is,  after  all,  rather  an  anomaly  for  several 
hundred  college  students  to  hire  a  special  train  and  go 
one  or  two  hundred  miles  to  witness  a  base-ball  or  a  foot- 
ball game  between  their  own  college  and  a  rival,  and  it  is 
to  be  feared  that  this  practice  is  also  growing  in  the  high 


A  VOCATIONAL  MODES  OF  EXPERIENCE      123 

schools.  Undoubtedly  some  advantage  accrues  to  many 
students  from  the  opportunity  to  visit  another  institu- 
tion and  meet  its  students.  On  the  other  hand,  such  a 
jaunt  cannot  help  being  a  serious  break  in  the  continuity 
of  thought  and  study  supposed  to  constitute  the  raison 
d'etre  of  the  school.  The  amount  of  money  spent  by  the 
students  upon  these  trips  and  the  standards  of  expendi- 
ture established  constitute  another  serious  aspect  of  the 
problem. 

While  physical  games  and  sports  are  so  necessary  a 
part  of  the  life  of  the  school,  and  while  permanent  inter- 
Play  not  to  es^  m  this  lme  °f  avocations  needs  to  be 
usurp  the  cultivated  for  its  later  bearing  upon  the 

place  of  work,  ^virtual,  yet  the  school  must  not  forget 
that  its  great  business  is,  after  all,  study  and  schol- 
arship, and  not  play.  Play  is  to  be  the  avocation  and 
not  the  vocation  in  the  school;  it  is  to  be  an  inciden- 
tal and  not  the  fundamental  activity  in  the  student's 
life. 

The  mental  avocations  are  closely  related  to  the  phys- 
ical avocations  in  so  far  as  the  fundamental  impulses 
prompting  them  are  concerned.  The  chief 
avocations,  difference  is  that  the  physical  activity  has 
dropped  out,  and  that  the  play  of  mind  in- 
stead of  the  play  of  body  occupies  the  centre  of  the  stage. 
The  stimulus  of  competition  and  the  instinct  of  combat 
are  still  present,  and  not  infrequently  the  influence  of 
public  opinion  and  social  appreciation  accentuate  the 
interest  in  the  game.  This  group  of  avocations  is  not  so 
important  as  an  immediate  school  problem  as  are  those 
based  on  physical  activities,  since  interest  in  mental 
games  as  supplanting  physical  games  is  rather  late  in  its 
origin. 


124         SOCIAL  PRINCIPLES  OF  EDUCATION 

The  mental  avocations  are  related,  on  the  one  hand,  to 
the  scientific  pursuits,  in  which  the  play  of  mind  comes  to 
Nature  of  be  an  en(^  ^  itself ;  an(i,  on  the  other  hand, 

mental  to  the  type  of  combat  involved  in  the  busi- 

avocafaons.  ness  pursuits,  where  the  opponent  is  not 
attacked  physically,  but  is  vanquished  with  the  weapons 
of  the  mind. 

The  child  first  shows  a  developing  interest  in  mental 
games  when  he  begins  to  concern  himself  with  the  solu- 
tion of  conundrums,  acrostics,  and  various 
games.  other  puzzles;  the  different  games  played 

with  cards,  checkers,  chess,  and  such  games, 
in  which  mental  quickness,  memory,  invention,  daring, 
successful  judging  of  an  opponent,  and  concentrated 
attention  are  the  necessary  attributes  constituting  the 
group  of  mental  avocations. 

Closely  related  to  the  mental  avocations  are  the  games 
of  chance,  which  are  often  an  outgrowth  of  games  other- 
wise harmless.    The  gaming  impulse  is  all 
chance.0  but  universal  in  the  human  family.    Care 

should  therefore  be  exercised  in  the  educa- 
tion of  children  that  their  mental  games  do  not  lead  in 
the  direction  of  gambling,  which  is  the  bane  of  so  many 
lives,  from  those  who  patronize  the  nickel-in-the-slot 
machines  or  the  cheap  faro  game  to  those  who  play  the 
no  less  debasing  games  of  high  finance. 

The  social  avocations  have  their  rise,  first,  in  the  gre- 
garious instinct,  which  prompts  people  to  assemble  to- 
gether, and,  second,  in  the  desire  and  need 
avocations.         ^or  diversion  and  amusement.    It  is  true 
that  the  social  impulse  plays  an  important 
part  in  the  groups  of  avocations  just  described,  but  there 
exists  a  tendency  to  flock  together  in  larger  groups,  and 


AVOCATIONAL  MODES  OF  EXPERIENCE      125 

perhaps  in  different  groups  from  those  in  which  we  play 
our  games.  In  the  larger  group  assembled  for  social  di- 
versions or  amusements,  the  rules  of  the  game  are  no  less 
strict  than  in  the  case  of  our  physical  and  mental  games, 
for  they  consist  of  the  social  conventions,  than  which 
there  are  no  rules  more  strict. 

In  addition  to  the  stimulus  and  enjoyment  experienced 
from  association  with  the  large  crowd  or  group  usually 
Part  played  assembled  for  social  amusement,  no  small 
by  the  social  part  of  the  pleasure  comes  from  the  oppor- 
unpulse'  tunity  to  mingle  on  intimate  terms  with  a 

few  chosen  friends  among  the  larger  crowd.  Not  infre- 
quently also  sex  attraction  plays  a  large  part  in  this  type 
of  avocations.  Young  people  pair  off  for  the  occasion,  or 
at  least  have  the  privilege  of  each  other's  company,  thus 
adding  another  incentive  to  participation  in  the  social 
diversions. 

The  deep-seated  and  universal  nature  of  the  impulse 

prompting  to  the  social  diversions  may  be  judged  from 

the  important  part  played  by  this  form  of 

The  universal  1  •  „     , 

appeal  of  avocation.    It  includes  all  classes  and  ages 

social  of  pe0piet    The  children  beg  for  their  par- 

diversions.  .          . 

ties  and  the  old  settlers  have  their  reunions. 

The  rustic  party  and  the  country  dance,  in  common  with 
the  exclusive  reception  or  ball,  are  an  outgrowth  of  the 
desire  of  people  to  mingle  together  in  their  fun  and 
amusements.  To  gratify  this  impulse  millions  of  dollars 
each  year  are  spent  on  our  amusement  places,  the  public 
parks,  summer  gardens,  theatres,  and  other  means  of 
social  diversion. 

The  social  avocations  touch  the  problem  of  education 
specifically  with  reference  to  the  question  of  the  type  of 
such  amusements  and  diversions  which  shall  be  engaged 
in  by  young  people.  For  it  is  inevitable  that  young  peo- 


126         SOCIAL  PRINCIPLES  OF  EDUCATION 

pie  will  have  some  form  of  social  amusement;  further,  it 
is  right  and  necessary  that  they  should  have.  The  ques- 
Points  of  ti°n  is'  frrst>  what  shall  be  the  type  of  this 

contact  with  amusement,  and,  second,  what  shall  be  the 
education.  amount?  Many  of  the  amusement  places  in 
our  cities  which  seek  to  attract  boys  and  girls  constitute 
a  menace  to  morality.  Nor  is  the  country  town  with  its 
dearth  of  amusements  of  any  kind  on  much  safer  ground. 
The  social  impulse  is  very  insistent  in  youth,  and  the 
young  people  will  be  together  on  the  streets  if  there  is 
no  opportunity  to  mingle  for  diversion  in  social  groups. 
It  is  far  safer  and  better  for  them  to  associate  with  each 
other  under  conditions  in  which  the  proper  social  conven- 
tions obtain  as  a  standard  for  conduct. 

The  problem  is  not  yet  solved  of  supplying  suitable  so- 
cial amusements  that  shall  afford  reasonable  opportu- 
^  t,  nity  for  young  men  and  maidens  to  associate 

Problem  .  .  / 

of  social  m  social  groups  under  proper  chaperonage, 

amusements       ancj  where  they  can  learn  to  observe  and 

in  the  school.        .  ,          ,  . 

be  at  ease  under  the  social  conventions. 
Various  high  schools  are  beginning  to  take  this  problem 
up  and  assume  the  function  of  ministering  to  and  guiding 
the  social  impulses  of  their  students  through  social  enter- 
tainments given  under  the  auspices  of  the  school.  In  hun- 
dreds of  towns  and  villages  throughout  the  country  the 
school-house  could  profitably  be  made  into  a  social  as  well 
as  a  scholastic  centre,  the  school  thereby  exercising  a  help- 
ful influence  over  the  avocational  life  of  its  pupils. 
Danger  of  The  question  of  the  proportion  of  time  de- 

waste  of  time  voted  to  social  amusements  constitutes  a 
on'  serious  problem  in  many  schools.  For  not 
infrequently  young  people  take  the  matter  into  their  own 
hands  and  organize  social  functions  with  little  restraint 
from  parents  and  no  supervision  on  the  part  of  the 


AVOCATIONAL  MODES  OF  EXPERIENCE      127 

school.  The  result  in  many  communities  has  been  a 
multiplication  of  social  clubs,  societies,  parties,  dances, 
and  other  forms  of  social  amusement  without  end.  Of 
course,  this  excess  of  the  avocational  interferes  with 
the  regular  activities  of  the  school  in  no  small  degree. 
The  solution  of  this  phase  of  the  problem  will  have  to 
come  through  the  co-operation  of  the  home  and  the  school 
in  seeking  to  limit  and  properly  control  social  amuse- 
ments without  eliminating  them. 

The  incidental  avocations  rest  chiefly  on  certain  per- 
sonal or  subjective  impulses  which  prompt  the  individual 

to  take  up  some  line  of  interesting  occupa- 
"  avocations.  ^on  pu^ty  as  a  diversion,  and  not  with  a 

view  to  profiting  from  the  effort  expended. 
In  this  sense  all  such  occupations  partake  of  the  nature 
of  play,  which  finds  its  full  explanation  and  end  in  the 
activity  itself  and  counts  any  practical  results  achieved 
as  purely  incidental.  It  matters  not  that  the  occupation 
undertaken  as  an  avocation  may  constitute  a  vocation 
for  others.  The  test  is  not  in  the  nature  of  the  activity 
but  in  its  motive  and  spirit. 

The  great  value  of  the  incidental  avocations  is  that  they 
lead  to  change  and  variety  without  idleness.  For  the 
Value  of  best  rest  often  comes,  not  from  idleness,  but 

incidental          from  change  of  occupation.    Many  persons 

are  able  to  forget  their  vocation  with  all  its 
perplexing  worries  and  problems  far  better  in  congenial 
and  interesting  employment  than  in  social  diversions  or 
in  physical  or  mental  games.  Such  incidental  occupations 
also  have  the  great  advantage  of  permitting  the  develop- 
ment of  permanent  and  worthy  interests  in  lines  of  activ- 
ity that  may  result  in  much  lasting  personal  growth  or 
satisfaction.  In  addition,  it  not  infrequently  happens 


128         SOCIAL  PRINCIPLES  OF  EDUCATION 

that  the  incidental  results  or  products  of  certain  incidental 
avocations  have  a  real  value. 

There  is  no  limit  to  the  lines  of  occupation  open  to 

those  who  seek  incidental  avocations;   for  almost  every 

vocation  may,  under  right  conditions,  be- 

Many  lines  ",  °  ' 

open  to  come  some  one  s  avocation.    It  is  probably 

incidental  noj-  possible  to  state  any  rigid  principle  upon 

which  the  choice  of  an  avocational  occupa- 
tion should  rest,  but  at  least  three  fundamental  consid- 
erations are  involved:  the  avocation  chosen  should  be 
adapted  to  the  interests,  physical  powers,  and  financial 
ability  of  the  individual;  it  should  be  of  such  nature  that 
it  will  allow  growth  of  skill  and  will  call  forth  worthy 
and  permanent  interests;  it  should  be  different  enough 
from  the  regular  vocation  of  the  person  to  furnish  a  com- 
plete diversion  because  of  the  change  of  activity  afforded. 
For  example,  a  stock-jobber  runs  a  fancy  farm  as  an  in- 
cidental avocation;  a  professional  linguist  is  an  authority 
on  birds;  a  celebrated  actress  raises  blooded  chickens; 
a  banker  is  a  craftsman  of  ability;  an  author  dabbles  in 
chemistry;  a  university  professor  is  an  enthusiast  over 
motorcylces.  Each  of  these  workers  secures  great  satis- 
faction from  his  avocation,  and  does  better  work  in  his 
vocation  because  of  his  incidental  occupation. 

The  incidental  avocations  touch  the  educational  aim 
less  closely  than  certain  other  avocations,  but  yet  are 
incidental  by  no  means  divorced  from  it.  It  is  the 
avocations  business  of  the  school  to  cultivate  as  broad 

and  education.  t*  «  ,    •    ,  MI 

a  line  of  permanent  interests  as  possible. 
Some  one  of  these  interests  should  lead  to  a  vocation; 
and  others  of  them  should  serve  to  point  the  direction 
for  desirable  avocations.  Nor  is  it  rare  that  a  line  of  ac- 
tivity taken  up  in  early  youth  as  an  incidental  avocation 


AVOCATIONAL  MODES  OF  EXPERIENCE      129 

has  led  to  its  acceptance  as  the  vocation  for  which  the 
individual's  interests  and  capacities  were  best  adapted. 

///.     The  School  and  Its  Avocations 

Concluding  our  discussion,  we  may  say,  then,  that  the 

school  cannot  escape  the  problem  of  the  avocations.    For 

the  school  has  the  individual  at  the  time 

The  school  .         .... 

cannot  avoid       when  the  avocational  is  playing  the  largest 
the  problem        part  m  faQ  jjf  e   an(}  when  the  avocational 

of  avocations.       .  .  . 

interests  and  standards  are  being  developed. 
The  school  should  therefore  both  teach  the  child  suitable 
avocations  and  inculcate  a  love  for  them.  It  should  afford 
an  opportunity  for  active  participation  in  the  avocations 
best  adapted  to  the  age  and  development  of  its  pupils. 
Above  all,  the  school  should  stand  for  true  sportsmanship 
— for  absolute  honesty  and  a  spirit  of  generosity  and  ap- 
preciation toward  opponents.  Further,  the  school  must 
help  the  individual  to  distinguish  clearly  between  voca- 
tion and  avocation.  Work  is  not  play,  any  more  than 
play  is  work.  And  all  attempts  to  make  education  result 
from  a  set  of  play  exercises  are  not  only  doomed  to  fail- 
ure, but  they  also  lead  to  false  standards  and  attitudes  of 
the  individual  toward  work.  Work  and  play  must  there- 
fore not  be  confused;  they  are  complementary,  and  not 
synonymous.  The  centre  of  the  school's  interests  and 
activities  must  be  its  scholastic  work,  and  not  its  ath- 
letics, its  parties,  or  its  clubs.  These  are  all  necessary 
and  good,  but  they  are  the  incidental,  and  must  not  usurp 
the  place  of  the  fundamental. 

Such,  then,  in  brief  outline,  is  the  social  process,  con- 
sisting of  the  modes  of  social  participation  open  to  the 


130         SOCIAL  PRINCIPLES  OF  EDUCATION 

individual.  It  is  made  up  of  all  the  varied  experiences  of 
men  as  they  live  and  work  and  play  together.  It  includes 
all  the  manifold  activities  constituting  the 
soc^  institutions.  It  includes  the  work  of 
man  as,  through  his  vocations,  he  carries 
his  environment  constantly  upward  and  increases  and 
tempers  his  own  powers.  It  also  includes  man's  play, 
by  which  he  rests  from  his  work,  brightens  the  more  sober 
aspects  of  his  experience,  and  recuperates  his  powers. 

This  social  process  is  what  man  makes  it;  it  is  his 
creation.  His  powers  and  capacities  define  its  scope  and 
limitations.  His  impulses  and  needs  supply 
*ts  motive  force.  The  social  process  is 
therefore  man's  measure  in  the  large,  the 
measure  of  the  composite  man.  Its  glories  and  achieve- 
ments are  a  tribute  to  man's  greatness;  its  follies  and 
weakness  are  a  proof  of  his  imperfections;  and  its  slow 
but  sure  progress  toward  a  higher  ideal  is  a  warrant  of 
his  essential  divinity. 

Not  only  is  the  social  process  man's  creation,  it  is  also 
his  opportunity  and  his  nemesis.  Without  it  he  can  do 
His  oppor-  nothing  or  be  nothing.  It  envelops  his  life, 
tunity  and  stimulates  him,  offers  every  inducement  for 
nemesis.  j.ne  exercjse  of  njs  powers,  and  richly  rewards 

him  for  his  contributions  to  its  welfare.  But  it  is  also 
relentless  and  cruel  if  it  fails.  Let  him  refuse  to  accept 
the  gifts  that  society  so  freely  offers  him,  neglecting  to 
educate  himself  or  develop  his  powers,  and  the  social 
process  sweeps  on  past  him;  he  is  punished  for  his  in- 
efficiency by  being  dropped  behind  in  the  race  of  progress. 
Let  him  rebel  against  the  social  order,  setting  his  hand 
against  tradition,  law,  and  order,  and  he  suffers  retribu- 
tion through  social  ostracism  and  the  prison. 


AVOCATIONAL  MODES  OF  EXPERIENCE      131 

Man  in  the  aggregate  is  too  great  and  powerful  for 
man  the  individual.  The  sum  total  of  human  lives  which 
The  social  we  ^ave  called  the  social  process  sets  the 
process  standard,  gives  the  direction,  and  defines 

the  requirements  for  the  individual  life- 
process.  The  individual  must  fit  into  the  greater  social 
order.  Nor  does  this  limit  the  possibilities  for  the  indi- 
vidual; for  man  is  at  his  greatest  and  best  when  he  is 
so  directing  his  own  life-process  that  it  may  become  a  vital 
and  significant  part  of  the  larger  stream  of  social  life,  to 
the  end  that  both  shall  be  the  richer  for  this  mutual  re- 
lationship. This  is  man's  highest  and  greatest  opportu- 
nity. To  bring  about  this  end  is  the  sole  function  of  edu- 
cation. All  that  accomplishes  this  end  is  education,  and 
nothing  else  is. 

Education,  therefore,  not  only  has  its  origin  in  the 
social  process,  but  leads  its  product  back  to  it.  It  has 
no  meaning  except  as  it  fits  the  individual 
originates  in  *OT  social  participation  in  an  ever-changing 
and  leads  back  set  of  social  activities.  And  this  can  be 
pro<cess.°Cial  ^one  om*v  ^Y  leading  him  to  identify  his 
growing  experience  with  the  broader  social 
experience;  by  causing  the  individual  life-process  to 
become  an  integral  and  vital  part  of  the  social  process; 
that  is,  by  socializing  the  powers  and  capacities  of  the 
individual. 

The  nature  of  the  individual's  powers  and  capacities, 
through  whose  activities  he  fulfils  his  own  destiny  and 
becomes  a  participant  in  the  social  process,  will  consti- 
tute the  next  phase  of  our  study. 


132         SOCIAL  PRINCIPLES  OF  EDUCATION 


REFERENCES 

Addams,  The  Spirit  of  Youth  and  the  City  Streets;  Bagley, 
Educational  Values,  ch.  XIII;  Forbush,  The  Boy  Problem; 
Groos,  The  Play  of  Man;  Gulick,  Mind  and  Work;  Hall,  Youth, 
chs.  V,  VI;  also  The  Story  of  a  Sand  Pile;  Hill,  Athletics  and 
Outdoor  Sports  for  Women;  Mangold,  Child  Problems,  Book  II, 
chs.  I,  II;  McKenzie,  Exercise  in  Education  and  Medicine; 
Mero,  American  Playgrounds;  Newell,  Games  and  Songs  of 
American  Children. 


PART  III 
SOCIALIZING  THE  INDIVIDUAL 

CHAPTER  VIII 

THE  POWERS  AND   CAPACITIES  OF  THE  INDIVIDUAL 

/.     The  Social  Nature  of  Indiwdual  Powers  and 
Capacities 

In  our  study  of  the  social  process  we  were  viewing 
society  in  its  dynamic  or  functional  aspect.  We  were 
The  social  concerned  with  social  activities  rather  than 
process  with  social  structure.  And  these  activities, 

experience-  constituting  as  they  do  the  social  process, 
process  of  the  are  but  the  combined  and  interrelated  life- 
individual,  processes  of  the  individuals  making  up  the 
membership  of  society.  Hence  it  is  that  the  social  process 
owes  its  nature  and  takes  its  color  and  trend  from  the 
character  of  the  powers  and  capacities  of  the  individual. 
Each  of  the  various  modes  of  the  social  process  has  its 
counterpart  in  the  fundamental  nature  of  the  individual. 
All  that  is  made  explicit  in  the  social  activities  must 
originally  be  implicit  in  the  individual. 

Nor  is  this  merely  a  one-sided  relation- 
Powers  of  the 
individual          ship,  for  the  powers  and  capacities  of  the 

shaped  in  the      individual  have  come  to  be  what  they  are 

social  process.  .  | 

because  of  his  social  participation.    What 
was  implicit  in  him  through  original  nature  has  become 

133 


134         SOCIAL  PRINCIPLES  OF  EDUCATION 

explicit  through  the  necessities  forced  upon  him  by  eco- 
nomic necessity  and  his  social  relationships;  through  his 
membership  in  family,  church,  and  state;  through  the  vo- 
cation by  which  he  took  his  part  in  the  world's  work  and 
made  his  contribution  to  social  progress;  and  through  the 
avocations  by  means  of  which  he  received  development 
and  diversion — in  these  ways  were  man's  powers  and 
capacities  wrought  out  and  brought  to  their  present  form. 
The  social  process  has  made  man,  as  he  in  turn  makes  the 
social  process. 

The  powers  and  capacities  of  the  individual  are  there- 
fore what  he  has  to  invest  in  the  social  activities  of  his 
,_  .  ..  ..    ,     day.    They  are  the  measure  of  the  contri- 

The  individual      ,       .          ,        , 

the  measure  bution  that  he  may  make  to  society.  On 
of  so.^ .  the  other  hand,  if  they  are  not  developed, 

possibilities.  .  ,'•".  . 

or  if  they  are  exerted  against  the  interests 
of  society,  the  powers  and  capacities  of  the  individual 
are  the  measure  of  what  society  may  lose  through  the 
failure  of  the  individual  to  fulfil  his  function  as  a  partici- 
pant in  the  social  process.  Looked  at  from  the  stand- 
point of  the  individual  himself,  his  powers  and  capacities 
are  a  measure  of  what  he  may  sacrifice  as  a  person  if  he 
fails  to  fulfil  his  destiny  in  the  full  realization  of  the  self. 
This  point  of  view  shows  the  necessity  of  next  entering 
upon  an  analysis  of  the  powers  and  capacities  of  the  indi- 
_  ^  .  vidual  with  a  view  to  discovering  what  in 

Nature  of  the          •••••!  i  •  i 

powers  and  '  the  individual  education  has  to  work  upon 
capacities  of  m  fitting  him  into  the  social  process.  The 

the  individual.  .  .  r     .          . 

powers  and  capacities  of  the  individual 
might  be  classified  and  described  from  a  number  of  dif- 
ferent standpoints,  but  the  biological  will  perhaps  best 
serve  the  purpose  in  the  present  study.  From  the  biolog- 
ical standpoint  the  powers  and  capacities  of  the  individual 


THE  POWERS  OF  THE  INDIVIDUAL          135 

may  be  divided  into  powers  and  capacities  (i)  for  im- 
pression, (2)  for  interpretation,  and  (3)  for  control  or 
adjustment. 

II.    Capacities  for  Impression 

The  capacity  to  receive  and  respond  to  impressions  is 
a  fundamental  biological  necessity.  It  lies  at  the  basis 
impression  a  °^  a^  adaptation  and  control,  and  hence 
fundamental  conditions  development.  Avoiding  the 
capacity.  philosophical  squabble  of  the  sensationalist 

and  the  nominalist  we  may  agree  that  from  the  biological 
standpoint  no  environment  exists  for  any  organism  ex- 
cept that  from  which  it  receives  impressions.  To  the 
organism  lacking  a  mechanism  for  vision  luminiferous 
ether  is  non-existent  and  light  and  color  form  no  part  of 
experience.  To  one  not  possessing  an  organ  for  hearing, 
sound  has  no  being  or  reality.  Likewise  the  lack  of  a 
social  sense  would  eliminate  all  social  concepts  and  rob 
experience  of  its  social  values. 

In  this  sense  no  individual  ever  enters  into  a  ready- 
made  environment.  His  world  of  physical  objects  may 
_  .  be  rich  and  varied,  but  to  him  it  contains 

Environment  .  .  ,  . 

limited  by  only  what  impresses  itself  upon  mm.  He 
capacity  for  mav  ke  surrounded  by  a  multitude  of  living, 

impression.  .  .  .          .  .      ,      . 

responsive  personalities,  but  yet  lack  for 
comradeship  if  impervious  to  social  stimuli.  He  may  live 
and  move  and  have  his  being  in  a  God  who  to  him  has 
no  reality  if  he  is  devoid  of  religious  sensibility.  Each 
individual  creates  his  own  environment  through  receiv- 
ing its  impressions  and  responding  to  them.  It  cannot  be 
created  for  him,  nor  be  thrust  upon  him.  He  himself,  in 
his  capacities  for  impression,  measures  its  scope  and 
determines  its  nature. 


136         SOCIAL  PRINCIPLES  OF  EDUCATION 

On  the  other  hand,  the  individual's  capacity  for  im- 
pression, his  ability  to  be  affected  by  his  environment,  did 
Environment  not  come  by  chance,  nor  was  it  presented  to 
shapes  him  out  of  hand  without  responsibility  on 

his  own  part.  On  the  contrary,  it  is  only 
by  the  reaction  of  the  organism  to  its  environment  that 
these  capacities  develop.  A  varied  and  insistent  environ- 
ment demands  a  corresponding  complexity  of  response; 
but  adaptive  response  is  conditioned  by  the  range  and 
validity  of  impressions.  Hence  the  capacity  for  impres- 
sions is  evolved  out  of  the  necessities  and  wants  of  the 
individual  as  related  to  his  environment.  It  is  in  the 
press  of  the  daily  life  and  experience  that  they  have  their 
origin  and  growth. 

The  place  of  an  organism  in  the  scale  of  creation  may 
be  determined  by  its  capacity  for  impressions.  For  it  is 
only  through  the  broad  environment  made 
possible  by  a  wide  range  of  impressions  that 
response  to  a  sufficient  variety  of  reactions  can  be  ob- 
envSonment.  tained  to  secure  successful  living.  The  in- 
dividual that  is  capable  of  responding  to  a 
simple,  constant  environment  alone  is  limited  to  a  cor- 
respondingly narrow  and  monotonous  experience.  Stated 
from  the  alternative  side,  progress  in  evolution  is  both 
dependent  upon  and  measured  by  the  scope  of  environ- 
ment. Only  a  diverse  and  inconstant  environment  affords 
the  stimuli  requiring  the  range  of  capacity  for  impressions 
that  goes  with  the  higher  forms  of  life. 

In  the  lowest  ranges  of  life  where  a  blind 
Sessions.       teleology  prevails,  the  capacity  for  impres- 
sions is  limited  chiefly  or  wholly  to  the  phys- 
ical.   In  man  it  has  risen  to  the  spiritual.    The  objects 
about  us  do  not  affect  us  merely  as  physical  objects, 


137 

but  their  social  values  also  appeal  to  us.  It  is  not  alone 
the  physical  form  of  people  that  impresses  us,  but  their 
spiritual  significance  as  well.  It  is  not  only  nature  that 
speaks  to  us,  but,  back  of  nature,  God.  Nor  are  these  two 
types  of  impressions  separate  and  isolated  from  each 
other  in  experience.  The  opposite  is  rather  the  case,  and 
the  two  can  seldom  be  separated  though  they  are  per- 
fectly distinct.  For  purposes  of  description  and  dis- 
cussion, however,  it  will  be  found  serviceable  to  speak 
of  the  capacity  for  impressions  under  the  two  heads  of 
(i)  impressions  from  physical  objects,  and  (2)  spiritual 
impressions. 

The  capacity  for  receiving  impressions  from  the  phys- 
ical world  lies  at  the  basis  of  all  other  capacities.    Out 
of  the  fusion  of  the  sensory  qualities  of 

Capacity  for  .  J '     n  . 

director  material  objects  our  perceptual  world  is 

physical  evolved.    The  related  or  logical  world,  the 

impressions.  u      r 

world  of  meaning,  rests  upon  a  world  of 
fact,  a  world  organized  out  of  sensory  impressions.  One 
comes  to  the  social  nature  of  man  only  through  an  inter- 
pretation of  impressions  received  from  the  physical  ex- 
pression of  his  social  nature.  God  is  to  be  apprehended 
first  of  all  through  impressions  coming  to  us  from  his 
work  in  nature  and  man.  Capacity  for  impression  is 
therefore  a  measure  of  the  amount  of  raw  material 
from  his  environment  available  to  the  individual  out  of 
whose  interpretation  he  is  to  develop  power  of  adjust- 
ment and  control. 

At  his  best  man  has  organs  developed  to  re- 
Man  IS  .       .  . 

limited  in  the  spond  to  the  touch  of  physical  environment 
range  of  his  on]y  over  a  sman  fraction  of  the  range  of  the 

senses.  ......          .,  ,—,.  , 

physical  stimuli  available.  The  eye  responds 
to  the  physical  energy  in  the  form  of  ether  waves  provid- 
ing they  come  at  the  rate  of  not  less  than  four  hundred 


138         SOCIAL  PRINCIPLES  OF  EDUCATION 

and  fifty  billions  nor  more  than  seven  hundred  and  ninety 
billions  a  second.  Below  and  above  these  rates  all  is 
darkness  to  the  eye,  although  it  is  well  known  that  lumi- 
niferous  ether  vibrates  in  waves  much  below  and  above 
these  rates.  It  is  interesting  to  speculate  on  the  multi- 
plied range  of  colors  that  would  be  visible  to  the  human 
eye  if  its  capacity  for  impressions  from  ether  waves  were 
to  be  doubled  or  trebled.  The  eye  is  also 
limited  as  to  its  range  for  distance.  Its 
power  of  accommodation  to  focusing  for  dis- 
tance lies  between  eight  inches  and  two  hundred  and  ten 
feet,  while  even  luminous  objects  at  great  distance  create 
absolutely  no  impression.  To  remedy  this  defect,  man 
has  invented  the  telescope,  which  has  enabled  him  to 
discover  worlds  beyond  worlds.  But  he  has  not  reached 
the  end  even  with  his  most  perfect  telescopes  added  to 
the  power  of  his  eye.  The  eye  is  limited  in  receiving  im- 
pressions from  objects  of  minute  size.  Molecules  and 
atoms  exist  as  creations  of  the  mind  in  its  effort  to  explain 
nature,  but  vision  is  helpless  in  the  atomic  and  molecular 
realm.  The  eye  can  receive  impressions  from  the  world 
of  plants  about  us,  but  the  whole  myriad  universe  of 
micro-organisms  is  utterly  beyond  its  ken.  The  influ- 
ence on  human  history  can  hardly  be  imagined  if  man 's 
eye  could  not  only  supplant  but  even  go  beyond  the 
best  microscopes  and  receive  impressions  from  the  infi- 
nitely small. 

The  human  ear  receives  impressions  from  waves  in  the 
air  providing  the  vibratory  rate  lies  between  about  twenty 
and  forty  thousand  per  second.    Below  and 
above  this  rate  all  is  silence,  although  no 
trouble  is  experienced  in  producing  vibra- 
tory waves  in  the  air  much  slower  or  faster  than  these 
rates.    If  the  ear  were  tuned  to  receive  impressions  from 


THE  POWERS  OF  THE  INDIVIDUAL          139 

rates  of  air  waves  up  to  one  hundred  thousand  a  second, 
our  range  for  the  musical  scale  would  be  almost  infinitely 
increased,  both  in  range  and  complexity,  and  harmonies 
and  melodies  now  undreamt  of  would  be  possible.  Like- 
wise, if  the  ear  could  receive  impressions  from  the  air 
waves  of  less  amplitude  than  is  now  required,  the  range 
of  distance  of  hearing  would  be  increased.  A  man's  ear 
might  then  take  the  place  of  the  telephone  or  the  tele- 
graph. 

So  this  line  of  illustration  might  be  carried  out  for  all 
the  physical  senses.  Each  of  the  end  organs  of  sense  is 
specifically  adapted  to  receive  impressions 
^rom  one  ^n<^  °^  stimulus  and  that  alone, 
and  only  over  a  limited  range  of  the  scope 
and  intensity  of  the  stimulus.  Further  than  this,  there 
are  probably  great  ranges  of  physical  stimuli  for  which 
man  has  no  end  organs  at  all,  and  hence  from  which  he 
cannot  receive  any  impression.  It  is  known  that  there 
are  certain  animals,  such  as  pigeons  with  their  homing 
sense,  that  far  excel  man  in  various  sensory  powers.  In- 
deed, evidence  is  not  lacking  that  some  animals  possess 
sensory  organs  of  which  man  has  no  counterpart. 

It  is  seen,  therefore,  that  man  at  his  best  is  capable  of 
receiving  impressions  from  only  a  fraction  of  the  universe 
Nature  is  °^  ^e  physical.  This  capacity  is  often  still 

imperfectiy  further  limited  by  imperfections  of  the 
'ed'  sensory  organs.  It  thus  seems  that  man, 
with  all  his  boasted  powers  and  his  ability  to  pry  into 
the  secrets  of  nature,  is,  after  all,  but  imperfectly  able 
to  meet  and  interpret  the  physical  world. 

The  limitations  imposed  upon  us  by  the  small  range  of 
our  senses,  or  by  their  imperfections,  may  be  still  further 
increased  by  lack  of  training  in  attentive  observation. 


140         SOCIAL  PRINCIPLES  OF  EDUCATION 

For  no  matter  how  perfect  the  organ,  and  how  well  it  is 
attuned  to  its  stimulus,  no  fruitful  impression  results  ex- 
Need  for  cePt  as  a  Pro<iuct  of  attention  to  the  stimu- 
training  in  lus.  Gathering  impressions  from  every  side 

of  a  richly  varied  environment  is  in  some  de- 
gree an  art.  The  impulse  of  curiosity  pushes  the  child  out 
to  challenge  the  secrets  of  his  environment,  and  the  native 
demand  of  his  mind  to  know  that  which  surrounds  it 
compels  him  to  an  attitude  of  inquiry.  But  it  is  a  great 
problem  that  the  child  is  attacking  when  he  steps  out  to 
master  the  material  world,  one  that  the  race  itself  has 
not  yet  more  than  made  a  beginning  upon.  Much  time 
may  be  saved  the  learner,  his  interest  and  enthusiasm 
may  be  conserved,  and  the  results  of  his  efforts  made  more 
fruitful  by  directing  him  into  the  most  fruitful  fields  of 
observation  and  teaching  him  its  method  and  technique. 
As  the  individual  masters  the  perceptual  world  and 
becomes  possessed  of  an  increasing  fund  of  thought 

material,  the  impression  side  of  experience 

The  tendency  ...... 

for  percep-  has  a  tendency  to  diminish  in  amount  and 
tionto  importance.  The  law  of  mental  economy 

decrease.  .  , 

demands  that  all  conscious  impressions  shall 
ultimately  be  reduced  to  the  lowest  elements  that  will 
serve  as  thought  terms  or  symbols  for  adjustment.  When 
the  child  is  constructing  a  new  percept  he  is  prompted  by 
curiosity  and  interest  to  discover  every  sensory  quality 
that  inheres  in  the  object.  He  must  see  it,  handle  it, 
taste  it,  smell  it,  and  use  it  in  every  available  way.  But 
finally  this  percept  is  no  longer  new;  it  does  not  appeal 
to  interest  and  curiosity,  and  therefore  claims  attention 
only  to  the  degree  that  enables  it  to  serve  its  function 
in  the  thought  process  or  in  directing  adjustment.  It 
is  when  the  percept  has  reached  this  stage  that  the  im- 


THE  POWERS  OF  THE  INDIVIDUAL          141 

pression  phase  is  reduced  to  a  minimum,  and  its  meaning 
or  interpretation  constitutes  its  chief  interest.  Observa- 
tion and  attention  fall  away,  the  perceptual  phase  of 
environment  is  losing  its  significance,  and  its  relational 
or  meaning  phase  is  gaining  ground. 

But  it  is  not  necessary  that  these  two  phases  of  experi- 
ence shall  be  set  so  sharply  in  contrast.    There  is  no  con- 
flict between  them  except  in  the  matter  of 

Interest  in  the 

perceptual  mental  economy,  and  economy  may  some- 
world  may  times  well  give  way  for  other  values.  The 

be  retained.  /....,      , 

sunset  may  serve  the  individual  as  a  symbol 
for  closing  the  day's  work  and  going  to  his  evening  meal, 
without  losing  its  power  to  impress  him  just  as  a  beautiful 
sunset  with  its  glory  of  color.  The  first  twitter  of  birds, 
the  bursting  of  buds,  and  feel  of  spring  in  the  air  may 
retain  distinct  values  of  their  own,  besides  serving  as  re- 
minders that  it  is  time  to  be  planting  the  garden.  Water- 
falls may  still  have  a  value  merely  as  water-falls,  in  addi- 
tion to  their  being  computed  in  units  of  motive  power. 
The  beautiful  valley,  or  park,  or  cathedral  may  retain 
its  freshness  and  beauty,  though  we  have  seen  it  a  thou- 
sand times.  The  secret  is  to  keep  the  capacity  for  im- 
pressions alive  by  constant  use  and  to  accept  the  physical 
world,  about  us  in  its  perceptual  value,  as  well  as  in  its 
value  as  symbols  for  adjustment. 

Social  impressions  come  to  us  indirectly  from  physical 
objects,  persons,  or  the  symbols  of  literature  and  art. 

No  object  of  our  environment  is  a  physical 

Capacity  for  J  J 

indirect  or  object  per  se,  but  all  from  the  first  possess 
social  a  sociai  value.  The  child,  in  the  process  of 

impressions.  .  r»     « 

constructing  his  perceptual  world,  is  not 
impressed  with  objects  merely  as  objects,  but  with  objects- 
as-used-by-people.  His  perception  of  color,  form,  tune, 


142         SOCIAL  PRINCIPLES  OF  EDUCATION 

and  space  all  grows  out  of  a  social  setting.  His  world  is 
primarily  not  a  physical  world,  but  a  social  world.  Thus 
we  do  not  proceed  from  a  physical  to  a  social  environ- 
ment, but  from  a  social  to  a  physical. 

And  social  values  continue  to  predominate.  A  watch 
is  more  than  a  register  of  passing  time:  it  possesses  social 
Social  values  values  through  conforming  to  certain  social 
the  most  standards  as  to  material,  size,  and  shape; 

fundamental.        ^  ajgo  pOmts  j^g  ^jme  for  going  to  OUT  meals, 

meetings,  or  other  social  engagements.  Our  homes  are 
prized  not  chiefly  because  of  their  physical  attributes, 
but  for  values  that  come  from  those  with  whom  we  share 
them.  Our  clothing  is  selected  not  so  much  for  its  phys- 
ical comfort  as  for  its  conformity  to  the  decree  of  fashion 
governing  those  of  our  social  plane.  Good  or  bad  weather 
even  impresses  us  indirectly  rather  than  directly;  it  is 
not  primarily  a  thing-in-itself,  but  rather  relates  itself  to 
our  social  activities,  helping  or  hindering  our  affairs. 

This  means  that  our  direct  impressions,  or  those  coming 
from  physical  objects,  are  all  profoundly  influenced  by 


Physical  values     ^e    ^act   °^    t^r   social   Values.      Without 

rest  on  social      these  social  or  indirect  impressions  the  phys- 
Ies*  ical  world  would  have  little  meaning  or 

worth.  Through  them  the  physical  objects  about  us 
cease  to  be  mere  trees,  animals,  or  buildings,  and  come 
to  be  saturated  with  social  significance.  Nor  is  there  any 
limit  to  the  amount  of  social  value  and  meaning  that  may 
come  to  be  deposited  in  physical  stimuli.  Compared 
with  the  social  significance,  the  intrinsic  or  physical  value 
of  objects  becomes  insignificant.  Family  heirlooms  of 
small  economic  worth  are  beyond  evaluing  in  commercial 
terms  because  of  their  social  worth.  Gifts  are  prized  out 
of  all  proportion  to  their  cost,  because  they  take  on  our 


THE   POWERS  OF  THE  INDIVIDUAL          143 

valuation  of  the  giver.  Men  freely  offer  their  lives  to 
rescue  from  an  enemy  a  bit  of  bunting  bearing  the  emblem 
of  their  country.  Indeed,  the  whole  structure  of  economic 
and  material  values  rests  on  a  foundation  of  social  needs 
and  desires.  After  the  satisfaction  of  the  most  elementary 
appetites  connected  with  hunger  and  sex,  man's  whole 
world  of  values  may  be  said  to  depend  on  his  capacity 
for  receiving  and  responding  to  social  impressions.  Ad- 
vancement in  social  evolution  may  well  be  measured 
in  terms  of  man's  ability  to  conceive  the  physical  world 
in  social  terms,  to  look  on  the  material,  not  as  an  end  in 
itself,  but  as  a  means  for  attaining  the  spiritual. 

The  capacity  for  social  impressions  rests  on  the  social 
impulse  inherent  in  all  normal  persons.  It  is,  however, 
Cultivation  of  susceptible  of  cultivation,  and  must  be  in- 
the  social  eluded  in  the  educational  aim.  As  a  nation, 

impulse.  America  is  not  so  richly  endowed  with  so- 

cial stimuli  coming  from  historical  personages,  places, 
objects,  and  events  as  is  the  case  with  older  nations.  And 
these  things  constitute  one  of  the  great  educational  assets 
of  a  people.  The  battle-fields  upon  which  England  won 
her  civil  and  religious  liberty,  the  homes  of  her  Shake- 
speares  and  Tennysons,  her  palaces,  and  even  her  prisons, 
the  memory  of  her  Miltons  and  Cromwells,  her  historic 
places  and  objects  of  high  heroism  or  splendid  sacrifice, 
and  the  record  of  her  centuries  of  great  achievement — 
all  this  is  an  educative  factor  in  the  lives  of  her  youth 
hardly  to  be  estimated. 

America  lack-  Social  values  have  not  taken  hold  so 
ing  in  social  strongly  in  our  own  country,  with  its  rela- 
tively short  past  and  its  broad  geographical 
expanse.  We  have  less  of  historical  perspective  and  of 
social  tradition.  Comparatively  few  spots  have  been  made 


144         SOCIAL  PRINCIPLES  OF  EDUCATION 

sacred  by  great  national  events.  Not  many  pilgrimages 
are  yet  made  to  the  homes  of  great  men  and  women  of 
former  generations.  This  is  not  because  America  has  not 
had  her  great  events,  her  historic  places,  and  her  illus- 
trious personages.  It  is  rather  that  the  bigness  and  m- 
sistence  of  the  present,  and  the  lack  of  a  wealth  of  social 
traditions,  makes  us  careless  of  these  values.  Material 
wealth  is  to  be  had  for  the  asking.  The  riches  of  the  soil, 
the  wealth  of  the  mines,  and  the  roar  of  the  factories 
exert  a  constant  appeal,  and  tend  at  last  to  occupy  the 
focal  point  of  attention.  Respect  for  the  past  and  alle- 
giance to  social  tradition  are  not  therefore  strong  traits  in 
our  national  character.  Historical  personages  exert  com- 
paratively little  appeal  to  the  minds  of  youth.  Historic 
places  and  objects  command  small  interest  and  little 
respect.  Ideal,  or  indirect,  values  cannot  be  listed  in 
commercial  terms,  and  hence  are  likely  to  be  left  out  of 
account.  Railways,  mines,  and  factories  are  in  danger 
of  becoming  an  end  instead  of  a  means.  The  sense  for 
social  values  needs  to  be  cultivated  in  our  youth. 

While,  as  we  have  seen,  the  whole  of  our  environment 

conveys  in  some  degree  social  impressions,  yet  the  most 

_    .       immediate  and  effective  source  of  social 

Most  effective      .  .          .     ,          ,   .  ,.  .  TTT 

social  stimuli  impressions  is  found  in  personalities.  We 
inhere  in  are  most  keenly  sensitive  to  that  which  we 

personalities.  J  . 

are  most  like,  and  it  is,  after  all,  people  and 
not  things  that  we  most  fully  respond  to.  The  social  in 
us  goes  out  to  the  most  vitally  social  about  us,  and  we  are 
impressed  more  by  the  human  than  by  the  material  part 
of  our  surroundings. 

But  personalities  may  exist  in  either  ideal  or  in  real 
form.  They  may  inhere  in  the  people  with  whom  we  act- 
ually mingle  and  associate,  or  they  may  be  conceived  by 


THE  POWERS  OF  THE  INDIVIDUAL          145 

the  artist  or  the  writer  and  made  concrete  in  a  painting, 
a  statue,  or  a  character  in  literature.  Since  these  ideal 
Real  and  characters  are  not  subject  to  the  limitations 

ideal  of  human  nature,  they  may  be  endowed 

personalities.      ^  ^^  creator  ^^  any  combination  of 

qualities  of  personality,  and  may  possess  these  qualities 
in  any  degree  whatever.  The  only  limitation  is  that  the 
personality  represented  must  not  be  overdrawn  to  the  ex- 
tent of  losing  the  natural  or  human  aspect.  For  once 
this  is  done,  the  character  has  nothing  in  common  with 
us,  and  hence  fails  to  impress  us. 

The  capacity  to  receive  and  be  influenced  by  ideal  per- 
sonalities expressed  through  the  symbolism  of  art  and 
language  constitutes  one  of  the  most  potent 

Ideal  person-  ...  .  ._, 

aiities  repre-  opportunities  for  education.  Through  this 
sente.d  "*  art  capacity  the  great  personalities  of  literature, 

and  literature.      7T*         '          °  .        c  . 

history,  and  biography  may  exert  their  en- 
nobling influence  on  the  lives  of  those  of  other  times  and 
places.  In  this  way,  the  greatest  of  human  qualities  are 
made  the  common  property  of  the  race,  and  the  thoughts 
and  feelings  that  actuated  men  and  women  of  other  ages, 
or  even  men  and  women  who  never  had  existence  except 
as  creatures  of  the  mind  of  artist  or  writer,  may  come  to 
serve  as  motives  in  the  lives  of  to-day.  And,  indeed, 
it  is  upon  this  universal  social  sense  that  the  unity  of 
the  race  and  the  continuity  of  culture  depend.  Upon 
this  sense  rests  our  feeling  of  kinship  with  past  genera- 
tions and  our  feeling  of  responsibility  for  those  that 
are  to  come  after. 

influence  of  ®n  tne  otner  hand,  the  capacity  to  re- 

the  evil  in          ceive  social  impressions  from  personalities 

personalities.        .g  ^  ^^  t()  ^  ^^  qualities  of  hu_ 

man  nature;  the  undesirable  may  impress  itself  equally 


146         SOCIAL  PRINCIPLES  OF  EDUCATION 

with  the  desirable.  Hence  the  evil  influence  that  comes 
to  the  child  from  the  criminal  or  the  morally  tainted  char- 
acter often  portrayed  in  trashy  literature,  or  from  the 
pictures  of  doubtful  moral  standard.  Sometimes  through 
conscious  imitation,  and  often  through  the  unconscious 
influence  of  suggestion,  the  qualities  of  character  thus 
portrayed  build  themselves  into  the  personality  and 
conduct  of  the  child.  With  these  facts  in  mind,  the 
selection  of  the  personalities  from  literature  and  art 
which  are  to  have  a  part  in  the  education  of  the  child 
becomes  a  matter  of  prime  importance. 

But  the  most  potent  source  of  social  impressions  is, 

after  all,  from  the  actual  people  about  us,  the  human  com- 

panionship that  environs  us  from  day  to 

Real  people  T  -r     •  i   j  *  •  i  i      i. 

the  most  day.    Life  is  appealed  to  more  quickly  by 


potent  social       yfe  ^an  by  symbols,  no  matter  how  skil- 

mfluence. 

fully  these  may  be  employed;  the  child  s 
playmates  and  companions,  and  his  associations  ia  the 
home,  are  a  greater  formative  influence  in  his  development 
than  are  the  ideal  characters  of  his  books  and  pictures, 
important  as  these  are.  Principles  and  ideals,  no  matter 
how  true  or  exalted,  have  relatively  little  power  either  in 
forming  or  reforming  human  nature  until  they  are  made 
concrete  in  a  living  personality.  Hence  it  is  that  all  great 
social  movements,  whether  in  politics,  religion,  education, 
or  any  other  line,  are  led  by  some  man  or  woman  whose 
life  embodies  in  concrete  form  the  principles  for  which 
the  movement  stands.  The  splendid  theories  of  Bacon, 
Locke,  Comenius,  and  Montaigne  had  to  be  exemplified 
in  the  life  of  Pestalozzi,  the  teacher,  before  their  effect 
was  felt;  only  when  God  had  revealed  himself  in  the  per- 
son of  Jesus  did  man  grasp  the  fuller  concept  of  God's 
relation  to  him. 


THE  POWERS  OF  THE  INDIVIDUAL          147 

One  of  the  highest  arts  is  that  of  correctly  interpreting 
those  about  us.  Nor  is  it  an  art  possessed  in  large  degree 
Need  of  cor-  ky  a^-  We  often  know  very  incompletely, 
rectiy  inter-  and  often  judge  very  falsely,  even  those 
preting  others.  ^..^  wkom  we  faHy  associate  and  whom  we 

know  best.  Most  of  the  misunderstandings  among  people 
are  from  simple  failure  to  understand  each  other;  and 
this  denseness  of  comprehension  grows  out  of  a  lack  of 
social  sensitivity,  the  ability  skilfully  to  read  the  natural 
or  conventional  signs  by  which  we  express  our  thoughts, 
feelings,  or  attitudes. 

The  capacity  for  social  impressions  is  susceptible  of 

fruitful  cultivation.    There  exists  no  science  of  human 

.    ,          nature,  it  is  true,  from  which  may  be  de- 

Capacity  for  '  .    ;  ,  ..    _ 

social  values  duced  the  principles  and  rules  to  be  applied 
m  r  be  d  m  arrivm&  at a  knowledge  of  those  about  us. 
Yet  changing  mental  attitudes  and  emo- 
tions are  constantly  finding  expression  in  the  mobile  face, 
the  eye,  and  the  bodily  posture.  There  is  constantly 
being  spoken  before  the  eye  a  language  of  surpassing 
variety  and  richness,  the  delicate  shadings  of  whose  mean- 
ings are  lost  upon  those  illiterate  in  these  forms  of  natural 
speech,  and  upon  those  who  are  too  careless  to  observe. 
Thought  is  being  expressed  through  the  medium  of  a 
spoken  language  capable  of  revealing  the  finest  shades 
of  meaning.  The  flexibility  of  spoken  language  is  still 
further  increased  by  means  of  the  various  qualities,  shad- 
ings,  and  inflections  of  the  voice,  and  by  many  other 
tricks  of  speech  too  refined  in  their  import  to  be  possible 
of  explanation.  The  mastery  of  all  this  great  complexity 
of  expression  is  no  small  task.  It  must  first  of  all  be 
motived  by  a  strong  desire  to  come  to  know  and  under- 
stand others.  It  requires  the  habit  of  observation  of 


148         SOCIAL  PRINCIPLES  OF  EDUCATION 

those  about  us,  and  the  most  careful  attention  to  the 
modes  of  physical  expression  by  which  mental  self  is 
revealed. 


///.     Capacities  for  Interpretation 

Impressions  are  not  an  end  in  themselves.   The  natural 
outcome  of  all  impression  is  response  with  reference  to 
some  environmental  situation.   But  in  order 
impression         th&t  ^e  response  shall  be  intelligent,  the 
to  secure  impressions  received  must  be  correctly  in- 

terpreted.  That  is,  their  relations  must  be 
discovered,  and  their  meanings  known; 
their  value  must  be  weighed,  and  their  importance  esti- 
mated. Interpretation  thus  stands  as  the  middle  term 
between  impression  and  response,  between  contact  with 
environment  and  adjustment  to  it.  It  seizes  upon  the 
different  impressions  gathered  by  the  mind  from  its  en- 
vironment and  uses  them  as  data  out  of  which  to  con- 
struct symbols  for  action.  Upon  the  validity  of  interpre- 
tation, therefore,  as  much  as  upon  fulness  and  accuracy 
of  impression,  depends  successful  control  with  reference 
to  environment. 

The  interpretation  of  our  environment  lies  in  two  broad 
fields,  which,  while  always  interrelated,  are  perfectly  dis- 
T wo  broad  tuict.  Interpretation  is  (i)  in  terms  of 
fields  of  knowledge,  leading  to  science;  and  (2)  in 

on'  terms  of  feeling,  leading  to  appreciation  of 
values.  Neither  is  possible  without  the  other,  and  both 
together  are  required  in  successful  control  of  the  ex- 
perience-process. We  will  therefore  proceed  to  examine 
more  fully  these  two  types  of  interpretation. 


THE  POWERS  OF  THE  INDIVIDUAL          149 

What  is  knowledge?  What  is  its  origin,  and  what  its 
end?  A  formal  definition  of  knowledge  will  be  of  little 
interpretation  service  in  our  discussion,  since  its  general 
(i )  in  terms  of  meaning  is  as  well  known  as  that  of  any 
knowledge.  terms  m  which  ^  mig^t  be  defined.  The 

question  of  the  origin  and  end  of  knowledge  will,  however, 
repay  some  consideration. 

Knowledge  is  the  perception  of  truth.  But  truth  is 
always  concrete  and  never  abstract.  Truth,  so  far  as  the 
Concrete  finite  mind  can  know  it,  is  not  an  invention 

nature  of  of  that  mind;    it  is  rather  a  discovery  by 

that  mind.  And  there  is  no  such  thing  as  a 
truth  which  is  separated  from  the  concrete  situations  of 
experience.  Likewise  knowledge,  or  the  perception  of 
truth,  arises  in  the  first  place  out  of  the  demands  of  some 
concrete  problem  of  experience  which  requires  solution. 
The  ancients  were  confronted  nightly  by  the  glittering 
heavens,  the  fact  of  day  and  night,  the  change  of  seasons 
— and  astrology  grew  up;  and  out  of  that  astronomy. 
People  all  through  the  race's  history  have  sickened  and 
died,  disease  has  been  a  constant  and  insistent  fact  de- 
manding explanation;  and  the  science  of  medicine  has 
been  evolved.  The  Nile  overflows  its  banks,  washing 
away  the  landmarks;  and  the  science  of  geometry  is  the 
result. 

•While  it  is  true  that  we  have  what  we  call  "abstract 
truth,"  "pure  sciences,"  and  "knowledge  for  its  own 
NO  knowledge  sake,"  yet  as  a  matter  of  fact  there  is  no 
for  its  own  such  thing.  There  is  no  truth  so  abstract 

that  it  does  not  somewhere  fit  into  the  great 
mosaic  of  truth  that  touches  men's  lives;  nor  would  the 
delvers  after  truth  long  continue  to  dig  were  there  not  the 
stimulus  of  society,  welcoming  all  truth,  not  as  an  abstrac- 


150         SOCIAL  PRINCIPLES  OF  EDUCATION 

tion,  but  as  somehow  related  to  the  day's  experience. 
Nor  is  there  any  science  so  "pure"  that  it  does  not  some- 
how, sometime,  play  into  the  hands  of  some  other  science 
which,  in  turn,  guides  men  in  the  business  of  living. 
Further,  there  can  be  no  knowledge  "for  its  own  sake." 
The  very  essence  of  knowledge  is  its  meaning;  and  knowl- 
edge having  existence  only  for  the  sake  of  existing,  that 
is,  knowledge  for  its  own  sake,  would  lack  all  meaning. 

Knowledge,  therefore,  has  had  its  origin  in  human  ex- 
perience, especially  in  human  needs,  or  the  crucial  points 
of  experience.  And,  since  experience  is 
©"knowledge,  chiefly  social,  knowledge  has  grown  up  out 
of  the  demands  of  the  social  process  and 
finds  its  function  in  guiding  that  process.  It  is  when 
society  becomes  organized  and  complex  that  the  crises 
arise  demanding  knowledge.  When  cities  and  bridges 
and  canals  and  aqueducts  must  be  built,  then  knowledge 
must  grapple  with  the  crucial  situations.  When  increas- 
ing population  threatens  to  exhaust  the  natural  resources, 
science  must  arise  to  direct  the  conservation  of  these 
resources. 

Now  it  naturally  follows  that,  since  knowledge  has  its 
origin  in  the  problems  confronted  in  the  concrete  situa- 
tions arising  in  society,  so  its  end  or  func- 

Social  function      .  •        •  j*.       .   •      .1  •   i  T.   • 

of  knowledge.  tion  1S  to  direct  in  the  social  process.  It  is 
through  knowledge  that  man  is  able  to  mas- 
ter his  environment,  and  hence  control  the  processes  of 
his  own  experience.  True  it  is  that  isolated  bits  of  knowl- 
edge are  discovered  now  and  then  which  seem  to  have 
no  bearing  whatever  in  a  practical  way  upon  human  wel- 
fare. But  such  is  not  ultimately  the  case.  Our  vision 
is  at  best  but  a  partial  vision,  and  our  view  of  truth  neces- 
sarily a  distorted  one,  since  we  cannot  see  it  all.  If  our 


THE   POWERS   OF  THE  INDIVIDUAL          151 

thinking  is  to  be  depended  upon  at  all,  then  truth  is  ulti- 
mately a  unitary  thing;  it  all  fits  together  in  one  great 
pattern,  like  the  parts  of  a  puzzle-map.  And  each  part 
of  the  universe  of  truth  finally  touches  and  influences 
every  other  part,  even  to  those  parts  that  are  in  daily 
contact  with  our  common  lives.  To  illustrate :  It  seemed 
a  trivial  and  useless  thing  when  the  microscopist  first 
discovered  that  there  are  micro-organisms  in  the  plant 
world  far  too  small  to  be  seen  with  the  unaided  eye.  What 
could  be  the  use  of  this  bit  of  truth,  since  we  could  never 
cultivate  these  organisms  commercially  or  employ  them 
in  any  way?  But  not  so.  We  now  know  that  the  world 
of  microbes  is  as  intimately  related  to  our  lives  as  is  the 
world  of  chlorophyl  plants.  Likewise,  a  very  useless  and 
abstract  thing  it  seemed  when  the  scientists  discovered 
that  electricity  acts  in  waves  of  energy  of  different  lengths 
and  amplitude.  Yet  out  of  it  all  we  have  wireless  teleg- 
raphy,, and  to-day  there  may  be  a  message  flung  out  over 
the  ocean  that  will  result  in  the  converging  of  a  score  of 
ships  to  save  a  sinking  vessel. 

Undoubtedly,  since  man  is  finite  and  hence  limited  in 
his  relations,  that  is  to  say,  in  his  points  of  contact  in  the 
Degrees  of  universe,  some  phases  of  truth  come  closer 
concreteness  to  his  day's  life  than  other  phases;  in  other 
edge'  words,  some  knowledge  is  more  concrete 
and  immediately  valuable  than  other  knowledge.  For 
example,  with  man's  present  stage  of  development,  it 
would  seem  to  matter  less  to  him  to  know  whether  those 
marks  on  the  planet  Mars  are  really  canals,  than  to 
know  the  cause  of  cancer  and  its  cure.  It  would  seem  to 
be  less  valuable  to  him  to  know  how  many  inflections  some 
word  in  Sanscrit  may  have  had  than  to  know  how  so  to 
care  for  his  own  body  as  to  insure  health  and  long  life. 


152         SOCIAL  PRINCIPLES  OF  EDUCATION 

Knowledge  is,  broadly,  of  two  kinds,  (i)  perceptual 
knowledge,  or  knowledge  of  things,  and  (2)  logical  knowl- 
edge, or  knowledge  of  their  relations.  The 
onmowiedge.  ^"st  we  Se^  as  a  direct  or  indirect  result  of 
the  stimulation  of  sensory  organs;  the  sec- 
ond comes  through  thinking  these  things  into  a  system; 
that  is,  through  discovering  their  mutual  interdependence 
or  interaction — their  relations.  The  first  type  of  knowl- 
edge is  fundamental,  since  without  it  the  second  could  not 
exist.  The  second  type  is  no  less  essential,  since  without 
it  sensory  objects  would  have  no  meaning,  or  so  little 
meaning  that  they  could  not  serve  as  symbols  for  any 
complex  adjustment.  While  these  two  types  of  knowl- 
edge are  perfectly  distinct,  they  are  not  separate  in 
experience.  A  thing  and  its  meaning  cannot  well  be 
divorced  in  our  thinking. 

When  knowledge  has  become  organic,  that  is,  when 
knowledge  of  the  second  type  has  gone  far  enough  so  that 
How  knowl-  tne  relations  between  the  various  phenom- 
edge  becomes  ena  revealed  to  us  through  the  sensory 
processes  are  seen  and  organized  into  a 
system,  the  sciences  arise.  If  the  relations  between  the 
various  phenomena  are  fixed  and  unvarying,  we  have  an 
" exact"  science;  if  the  relations  must  of  necessity  be 
variables,  as  in  the  case  of  the  economic  relations  of 
people,  we  can  no  longer  have  an  "exact"  science.  Yet 
the  difference  in  exactness  is,  after  all,  only  one  of  de- 
gree; and  for  the  work  required  of  social  science  it  may 
be  as  serviceable  as  is  the  science  of  mathematics  for 
what  is  required  of  it.  In  the  case  of  a  field  of  knowledge 
in  which  the  phenomena  or  their  relations  are  not  yet 
well  known  we  have  no  science  at  all,  but  only  a  body  of 
knowledge  which  is  growing  in  the  direction  of  a  science. 


THE  POWERS  OF  THE  INDIVIDUAL          153 

Science  is  the  ultimate  end  toward  which  knowledge 

is  striving.     When  knowledge  has  become  science  it 

serves  as  an  efficient  instrument  of  control. 

Science  the  .....          .  ..... 

ultimate  end       This  is  its  function.    Arising  in  the  prob- 
^_aU1  lems  of  one  set  of  concrete  situations,  it 

knowledge.  .  ...,.., 

finds  its  end  in  aiding  in  the  solution  of 
another  set  of  concrete  situations.  The  scientific  dis- 
coveries of  yesterday  direct  the  activities  of  to-day,  and 
the  environment  which  then  mastered  us  is  now  made  to 
contribute  to  our  progress.  Through  science  we  control 
the  forces  about  us,  so  that  steam  and  electricity,  and 
even  the  winds  of  heaven,  are  harnessed  and  made  tamely 
to  do  the  work  of  man. 

And  it  is  altogether  fitting  that  the  science  wrought 
out  by  one  generation  should  play  into  the  hands  of  the 
Science  an  nex^  generation,  thus  giving  them  the  ad- 
instrument  of  vantage  of  a  more  perfect  control,  and  en- 
social  control,  abijng  them  to  attack  new  problems  and 
achieve  new  victories.  It  is  this  team  work  of  the  gen- 
erations that  makes  progress  possible.  It  is  almost  im- 
possible to  estimate  the  advantage  possessed  by  the  pres- 
ent generation  over  the  one  living  a  hundred  years  ago 
by  virtue  of  our  knowledge  of  electricity,  mechanics,  the 
laws  of  nature,  the  body  and  mind,  and  a  hundred  other 
fields  in  which  man  is  slowly  but  surely  winning  his  way. 

Illustrations  of  science  acting  as  an  instrument  of  con- 
trol are  to  be  found  on  every  hand.  It  has  already  been 
Science  seen  ^ow  science  helps  in  the  obtaining  of 

advances  further  knowledge  in  all  fields.  To  note 

but  a  few  examples:  By  constructing  the 
telescope  and  microscope,  science  has  added  vastly  to 
man's  knowledge  of  the  material  universe.  The  science 
of  mathematics  has  enabled  him  to  arrive  at  results  in 
all  lines  of  knowledge  which  otherwise  would  have  been 


154         SOCIAL  PRINCIPLES  OF  EDUCATION 

impossible.  The  sciences  of  neurology,  physiology,  and 
pathology  have  furnished  a  foundation  for  more  fruitful 
work  in  the  field  of  psychology;  and  the  science  of  biology 
has  become  the  basis  for  all  the  social  sciences. 

Control  through  science  does  away  with  the  reign  of 
superstitions.  Science  has  taught  that  sickness  is  not 
Science  caused  by  evil  spirits,  and  witchcraft  has 

destroys  died  a  natural  death.   Nor  is  sickness  longer 

looked  upon  as  a  visitation  of  Providence, 
but  as  a  result  of  the  violation  of  natural  laws,  and  it  is 
therefore  to  be  prevented  or  cured  by  conforming  to  those 
laws.  This  simple  standpoint  has  resulted  not  only  in 
relieving  man  from  a  degrading  burden  of  superstition, 
but  also  in  lengthening  human  life,  and  in  reducing  hu- 
man suffering  to  an  almost  incalculable  degree. 

Science  has  likewise  taught  us  to  look  for  the  causes 
of  poverty  in  other  sources  than  those  of  mere  chance; 
Science  aids  and  we  are  coming  to-day  to  look  upon 
social  pauperism  as  a  social  disease,  and  are  try- 

ing to  control  it  as  in  the  case  of  physical 
diseases  by  removing  its  causes.  Science  has  given  us  a 
new  standpoint  in  the  treatment  of  crime  and  we  are 
seeking  now  in  our  wiser  moments  to  control  it  at  its 
source  in  place  of  at  its  outcome. 

We  are  coming,  through  science,  to  understand  the 
heredity  of  plants  and  animals,  and  can  now  successfully 
Leads  to  control  the  type  of  product  in  either,  so 

control  over  that  when  the  breeder  determines  a  type 
that  he  would  like  to  produce,  he  has  but 
to  apply  the  teachings  of  science,  and  the  desired  results 
follow.  In  our  crusade  for  the  conservation  of  natural 
resources,  science  is  to  be  our  greatest  weapon  of  control. 
For  example,  it  is  now  showing  us  how  we  may  achieve 
better  results  in  building  by  the  use  of  nature's  indestruct- 


THE  POWERS  OF  THE  INDIVIDUAL          155 

ible  materials  rather  than  by  cutting  down  our  forests; 
it  is  teaching  us  how  to  construct  our  buildings  so  that 
they  may  not  burn  up;  it  is  discovering  to  us  how  to  mine 
and  burn  our  coal  so  that  we  may  not  waste  nature's 
supply  of  fuel;  it  is  instructing  how  to  utilize  human 
labor  that  the  largest  returns  may  be  secured  with  the 
least  possible  degree  of  waste. 

The  sciences  of  physiology  and  of  psychology  are  com- 
ing to  give  man  a  control  over  the  forces  that  operate  in 
Gives  man  n^s  ^e>  anc^  hence  over  his  ultimate  destiny, 
power  over  to  a  degree  that  was  wholly  impossible  in 
the  days  of  ignorance  and  superstition. 
Man  is  coming  to  realize  that  even  personal  morality 
has  a  scientific  basis,  and  that  he  who  would  live  in  ac- 
cordance with  ethical  principles  must  first  of  all  have  a 
thorough  grasp  upon  the  sciences  that  underlie  the  very 
foundations  of  life. 

It  seems  evident,  then,  that  man  must  interpret  his 
world  in  terms  of  knowledge  if  he  is  to  become  master  of 
Man  must  ^s  realm.  He  must  know  his  environment, 
know  his  both  physical  and  social;  and  he  must  also 

mt*  rightly  conceive  himself  and  the  end  toward 
which  he  is  moving.  If  he  is  to  achieve  his  high  destiny, 
teleology  must  in  him  become  clearly  intelligent,  which 
is  to  say  that  it  must  be  founded  upon  a  systematized 
and  organic  body  of  knowledge;  that  is,  upon  science. 

The  individual  interprets  the  world  not  in  terms  of 
knowledge  alone,  but  also  in  terms  of  feeling.  He  not 
interpretation  onty  apprehends  truth  or  reality,  but  he  is 
(2)  in  terms  also  affected  by  it.  The  universe  has  for 
him  not  only  meaning,  but  value  as  well. 
While  knowledge  is  an  instrument  of  control,  feeling  is 
the  motive  force  in  life.  Knowledge  is  the  rudder,  feeling 
is  the  power  that  drives  the  machinery. 


156         SOCIAL  PRINCIPLES  OF  EDUCATION 

Feeling  functions  first  of  all  as  an  appraiser  of  values. 
It  takes  the  thing  that  knowledge  says  is  true,  and  speci- 
fies how  much  this  thing  is  worth.  It  puts 
ofUfeeling.  tne  stamP  °f  reality  on  experience  and  dic- 
tates what  things  are  worth  while.  It  sets 
up  the  great  goals  to  be  striven  for  and  the  great  disasters 
to  be  avoided.  It  floods  the  life  with  riches  or  starves  it 
with  poverty. 

The  world  interpreted  in  terms  of  knowledge  alone 
would  be  a  very  cold  and  incomplete  world.  Experience 
Feeling  defines  defined  as  knowledge  only  would  still  have 
values  and  meaning,  but  it  would  be  pale  and  devoid 
reality.  Q£  Warm|-j1  an(j  coior>  Reality  constituted 

exclusively  of  things  known  would  still  possess  the  form 
or  reality,  but  lack  most  of  its  content.  For  the  truest 
and  deepest  realities  are  precisely  those  that  have  the 
largest  element  of  feeling  in  them.  One's  affections  are 
much  more  real  to  him  and,  subjectively,  of  infinitely  more 
worth  than  his  knowledge  of  higher  mathematics  or  the 
niceties  of  linguistic  inflections.  Fear  of  an  earthquake 
or  a  tornado  is  a  clearer  reality  than  a  demonstration 
of  the  nebular  hypothesis.  The  feeling  of  patriotism 
comes  closer  to  the  life  than  any  theory  of  the  state,  and 
religious  fervor  outweighs  as  a  matter  of  personal  experi- 
ence the  theological  doctrine  of  supererogation. 

While  it  is  true,  therefore,  that  all  interpretation  must 
be  based  on  something  known,  yet  it  is  no  less  true  that 

a  full  interpretation  of  our  environment  is 
tatiorTof  'the "  impossible  without  going  beyond  knowledge, 
world  im-  The  person  who  looks  at  the  sunset  with  a 
£*£*£*'  complete  knowledge  of  the  scientific  laws 

underlying  the  production  of  the  crimson, 
yellow,  and  orange  colors,  but  feels  nothing  of  its  beauty, 
is  at  least  as  far  from  having  fully  interpreted  the  sun- 


THE  POWERS  OF  THE  INDIVIDUAL          157 

set  as  if  he  had  been  alive  to  its  aesthetic  values,  but  had 
lacked  knowledge  of  the  laws  of  the  ether  vibrations  con- 
stituting physical  light. 

One  may  know  the  facts  of  history,  and  yet  fail  to  in- 
terpret peoples  of  other  times  because  of  the  inability 
Vital  relation  to  ^ee^  across  the  stretches  of  time  the  pulse 
of  knowledge  of  the  human  heart  as  it  beats  in  joy  or 
sorrow,  in  hope  or  in  fear.  It  is  possible  to 
be  an  acute  theologian,  and  yet  fail  to  interpret  God  be- 
cause of  lack  of  the  feeling  response.  On  the  other  hand, 
one  who  is  little  of  a  philosopher  and  less  of  a  theologian, 
may  arrive  at  valid  and  serviceable  definition  of  God 
through  a  vital  response  of  feeling.  Finally,  dropping 
into  popular  phrase,  the  heart  must  join  with  the  head 
in  the  interpretation  of  our  world.  While  the  heart  with- 
out the  head  would  give  us  a  world  of  values  distorted 
because  lacking  the  perspective  of  relationships,  so  the 
head  without  the  heart  would  give  us  a  world  of  mean- 
ings without  values  because  lacking  in  warmth  and  worth. 
The  interpretation  of  the  world  through  feeling  takes 
four  general  directions:  (i)  Feelings  whose  terminal  as- 
Different  pects  are  the  self — egoistic  feelings;  (2)  feel- 
phases  of  ings  which  have  for  their  object  other  peo- 
ple— social  feelings;  (3)  feelings  which  grow 
out  of  the  perceptual  world — (Esthetic  feelings;  (4)  feel- 
ings whose  object  is  God — religious  feelings. 

Whether  feeling  was  the  earliest  form  of  response  in 
the  race  and  the  first  mode  of  interpreting  environment, 
it  belongs  at  least  among  the  first  of  the 

P°wers  of  the  individual  to  develop.  The 
egoistic  are  the  first  of  the  feelings  to  have 
their  rise,  and  remain  a  prominent  factor  in  determining 
the  attitude  of  the  individual  throughout  life. 


158         SOCIAL  PRINCIPLES  OF  EDUCATION 

The  egoistic  feelings,  or  self-love  and  interest,  are  a 
natural  biological  product.  In  the  economy  of  the  race 
The  egoistic  ^  was  found  serviceable  for  the  individual 
feelings  a  bio-  to  care  for  himself  first  and  foremost.  By 
logical  product.  ^  chud  j^  environment  ;s  interpreted 

first  of  all  in  his  relation  to  his  own  comfort  and  welfare. 
The  material  world  is  of  value  only  in  supplying  his 
needs.  His  mother,  even,  exists  that  she  may  minister 
to  his  pleasure  or  relieve  his  pain.  He  is  thoroughly  self- 
centred,  in  the  highest  degree  selfish. 

The  egoistic  feelings  decrease  relatively,  if  not  actually, 
with  growth  of  experience,  and  particularly  with  the 
rise  of  the  social  feelings.  Yet  the  egoistic 
decrease  of  feelings  never  lose  their  grip  upon  the  life, 
the  egoistic  As  the  self  develops  and  comes  to  include 
feelings  with  ^  ^er  cycje  of  exjstencej  fae5e  feelings 

change  in  form,  but  still  exert  their  influ- 
ence. By  those  who  have  an  excess  of  egoistic  feeling, 
the  material  resources  of  the  earth  are  often  interpreted 
solely  as  an  opportunity  to  amass  personal  fortunes  be- 
yond reasonable  needs.  Men  are  not  infrequently  looked 
upon  by  certain  of  their  fellows  as  so  many  units  of 
energy  to  set  at  work  for  the  selfish  ends  of  him  who  con- 
trols them,  or  as  so  many  voting  machines  to  count  a 
tally  toward  bringing  power  and  honor  to  the  one  who 
manipulates  them.  Religion  has  by  some  been  valued 
chiefly  as  a  life-preserver  intended  to  buoy  its  possessor 
safe  into  the  heavenly  port. 

The  social  feelings  early  have  their  rise, 
feelings!01          and  are  as  necessary  to  the  full  develop- 
ment of  the  individual  as  are  the  egoistic. 
Through  the  social  feelings,  material  wealth  is  inter- 
preted in  terms  of  the  amount  of  pleasure  it  can  be  made 


THE   POWERS  OF  THE  INDIVIDUAL          159 

to  give  others.  Fellow  men  are  looked  upon,  not  as  an 
opportunity  for  exploitation  for  selfish  gain,  but  as  an 
opportunity  for  helpful  co-operation  and  service.  Famous 
pictures  are  not  to  hoard  in  private  galleries,  shut  away 
from  the  world,  but  are  to  loan  or  give  to  public  gal- 
leries, or  to  copy  and  spread  broadcast  among  the  masses. 
Medical  discoveries  or  mechanical  inventions  are  not  to 
sell  to  the  highest  bidder,  but  to  give  where  most  needed. 
Religion  is  not  a  species  of  death  insurance,  but  a  method 
of  contributing  service. 

The  social  feelings  have  given  rise  to  some  of  the  most 
significant  terms  in  human  speech.  Friend,  companion, 
Significance'  lover,  comrade,  coworker,  fellow-country- 
of  the  social  man,  and  a  host  of  other  terms  suggest 
different  aspects  of  this  group.  And  it  is 
not  hard  to  understand  how  far  short  of  a  full  and  com- 
plete interpretation  of  our  world  we  should  be  should 
we  drop  out  of  it  the  values  that  come  through  our 
interpretation  of  men  as  friends,  companions,  coworkers, 
and  all  the  rest. 

The  present  age  is  undoubtedly  to  go  into  history  as 
an  era  of  transition  from  the  individualistic  to  the  social 
standpoint.  This  is  coming  to  be  known 
^  the  "sodal  century."  The  social  feel- 
ings are  playing  a  larger  part  in  the  inter- 
pretation of  the  world  than  in  any  former  time,  and  are 
giving  rise  to  new  concepts  and  new  motives  such  as 
"social  solidarity"  and  "universal  brotherhood." 

Through  the  aesthetic  feelings  the  world 
8*1      "  *s  interpreted  in  terms  of  beauty,  fitness, 


harmony,  and  completeness.  The  aesthetic 
feelings  awaken  relatively  early  in  both  race  and  indi- 
vidual. The  beauty  of  nature's  colors  so  appeal  to  prim- 


160         SOCIAL  PRINCIPLES  OF  EDUCATION 

itive  man  that  he  paints  them  on  his  dwelling  and  his 
weapons,  and  even  on  his  body.  The  little  child  deter- 
mines the  value  of  a  toy  or  a  picture  in  accordance  with 
his  notion  of  whether  it  is  "pretty"  or  not. 

It  is  the  aesthetic  feelings  which  save  the  yellow  prim- 
rose on  the  bank  from  being  just  "a  yellow  primrose  and 
The  value  nothing  more."  These  feelings  make  sun- 
of  aesthetic  sets  more  than  a  symbol  for  closing  the 
eling'  day's  work  or  going  to  the  evening  meal. 

It  is  aesthetic  feeling  which  gives  architecture  its  value, 
and  makes  it  worth  while  to  put  much  labor  and  treasure 
into  beautifying  our  homes,  public  parks,  boulevards,  and 
playgrounds.  It  is  aesthetic  feeling  that  makes  a  few 
grains  of  paint  and  a  few  square  feet  of  canvas  possess 
so  high  a  value. 

Lacking  in  aesthetic  feeling,  an  individual  misses  the 

full  interpretation  of  the  world,  just  as  surely  as  if  he 

were  to  lack  in  the  egoistic  or  the  social.    It 

Beauty  one  of 

the  most  vital  is  true  that  these  are  more  nearly  related 
phases  of  £O  bare  existence,  but  man  is  destined  to 

experience.  .  . 

more  than  mere  existence,  and  must  pass 
beyond  the  economic  in  his  interpretation  of  the  world. 
Too  many  lives  are  now  barren  of  the  beautiful,  because 
of  stifling  the  aesthetic  feelings  or  failing  to  develop  them. 
To  all  such,  one  of  the  richest  and  most  fruitful  phases 
of  reality  is  lacking.  To  them  the  beauties  of  nature  and 
of  art,  the  harmonies  of  sound,  and  the  exquisite  in  form 
and  feature  are  without  worth,  because  of  failure  to 
respond  to  them;  and  hence  their  world  is  but  the  frac- 
tion of  a  world. 

The  "religious"  God  in  his  personal  relation  to  men  is  to 
feelings.  be  interpreted  chiefly  through  feeling.  Only 

in  this  way  can  He  become  a  God  of  reality  and  of  ex- 


THE  POWERS  OF  THE  INDIVIDUAL          161 

perience.  The  perceptual  world  gives  constant  evi- 
dence of  his  presence  as  a  creative  force,  and  reason 
and  revelation  tell  of  his  relations  to  man.  But  a 
God  known  only  in  these  ways  is  a  very  distant  and  cold 
reality.  Not  until  religious  feeling  has  interpreted  the 
nature  of  God  as  father  and  friend  does  he  become  an 
immediate  reality,  possessing  felt  value  in  our  lives. 

Religious  feeling  is  fundamental  as  a  mode 

of  interpreting  our  world.  Practically  all 
to  a  full  inter-  peoples  evolve  this  feeling,  as  do  all  indi- 
worhL01  viduals.  It  seems  to  have  its  rise  in  a  sense 

of  incompleteness  and  weakness,  and  the 
feelings  of  reverence,  adoration,  and  worship  go  out  to 
the  Being  who  can  serve  as  a  complement  to  man's 
weakness  and  his  need. 

The  religious  feelings  lie  very  close  to  the  aesthetic 
feelings.  The  beautiful  and  the  good  are  in  some  degree 

synonymous.     Both  imply  the  harmony 

Relation  of  J         /  .  i   4.  nJl 

aesthetic  and  and  fitness  coming  from  completeness.  But 
religious  religious  feeling  goes  beyond  aesthetic  feel- 

ing in  that,  while  aesthetic  feeling  interprets 
the  world  in  terms  of  beauty,  religious  feelings  add  to 
this  the  personal  relationship  implied  in  the  fatherhood 
of  God  and  a  common,  conscious  purpose  for  the  destiny 
of  man. 

It  is  seen,  then,  that  our  world  is  to  be  interpreted  in 
its  two  great  phases,  (i)  as  a  world  of  facts,  the  knowl- 
Oursaworid  ec^Se  °f  which,  when  organized  is  science, 
d)  of  "facts,"  becomes  a  great  instrument  of  control; 
(2)  of  "values."  an(j  ^  ag  a  worj(j  of  va]ueS)  the  apprecia- 
tion of  which  gives  it  its  worth  as  an  experience  process. 
Lacking  any  phase  of  knowledge  interpretation,  man  can 
exercise  but  partial  control  in  his  world;  lacking  any 


162         SOCIAL  PRINCIPLES  OF  EDUCATION 

phase  of  feeling  interpretation,  he  has  a  world  of  meagre 
or  distorted  values.  In  either  case  he  possesses  but  a 
partial  world. 

All  normal  individuals  have  implicit  in  them  the  powers 

and  capacities  to  be  used  in  the  complete  interpretation 

of  their  world.    The  race  is  far  from  having 

Education  to 

include  both       reached  such  an  interpretation,  it  is  true; 


phases  of  but  every  generation  is  making  progress. 

interpretation.  ,  J    °.  .  f 

It  therefore  becomes  the  problem  of  educa- 
tion so  to  develop  these  powers  and  capacities  of  the 
individual  that  the  world  may  come  to  be  interpreted  at 
its  fullest  and  richest;  that  its  meanings  and  its  -values 
alike  shall  come  to  serve  as  symbols  to  guide  in  the  ex- 
perience process. 

IV.     Powers  of  Control 

From  the  biological  standpoint,  capacities  for  im- 
pressions and  interpretation  exist  only  that  adaptive 
impression  and  response  may  follow.  The  degree  of  mind 
interpretation  required  is  measured  by  the  necessity  for 
ro  '  adjustment,  and  hence  powers  and  capaci- 
ties never  evolve  for  their  own  sake,  but  the  better  to 
enable  the  individual  to  fit  into  its  environment.  In 
lower  realms  the  environment  is  accepted  chiefly  as  it 
is  found,  and  control  only  consists  in  adjusting  the  or- 
ganism to  its  conditions. 

But  man  has  risen  above  the  biological, 

For  man  con-  .  ..,__. 

troi  is  more  and  attained  to  the  spiritual.  He  is  more 
than  adjust-  f^^  an  organism;  he  is  a  person.  For  him 
control  is  not  mere  adjustment.  He  not 
only  adapts  himself  to  his  environment,  but  makes 
his  environment  over  to  suit  his  needs.  Man  is  sub- 


THE  POWERS  OF  THE  INDIVIDUAL          163 

ject  in  a  degree  to  the  limitations  of  his  surroundings,  but 
he  has  the  power  to  remove  many  of  these  limitations. 
He  not  only  climbs  upward  himself,  but  he  reconstructs 
and  advances  his  environment  in  the  process.  He  is  not 
only  subject  to  control,  but  he  controls.  He  is  therefore 
capable  not  only  of  adjustment,  but  of  progress. 

The  great  desideratum  in  the  life  of  the 
individual  or  society  is  the  securing  of  con- 
control  over  trol  over  the  experience  process.  This  con- 
stitutes  freedom.  It  is  the  end  of  all  social 
evolution,  as  it  is  the  end  of  all  individual 
education  and  development.  It  is  the  power  of  control 
that  differentiates  a  mere  racial  unit  into  a  self-directive 
personality. 

The  child  at  birth  may  be  looked  upon  as  a  mere  indi- 
vidual of  genus  homo,  ready,  however,  to  develop  through 
_  ,  ,  the  stages  of  experience  into  a  person, 

Development  .  ,       ,r         •  ^       i  •  »    •« 

to  be  defined  unique  and  self-active.  On  the  social  side, 
in  terms  of  jje  js  at  tne  beginning  but  an  organ  in  the 

control. 

social  body,  a  part  in  the  social  process, 
possessing  no  characteristics  except  those  contributed  to 
him  by  the  race.  But  he  also  stands  ready  to  develop 
into  a  member  in  the  social  process,  a  participant  in  social 
activities,  a  contributor  to  social  welfare  and  progress. 
These  two  lines  of  development,  the  individual  and  the 
social,  are  but  different  aspects  of  the  same  unitary 
process.  The  mere  individual  becomes  a  person,  and 
the  mere  social  organ  becomes  a  social  member  only 
through  a  gradual  and  constant  reconstruction  of  ex- 
perience. The  nature  of  this  reconstruction  grows  out 
of  the  nature  of  the  powers  and  capacities  of  the  indi- 
vidual on  the  one  hand,  and  out  of  the  demands  of  the 
social  process  on  the  other. 


164         SOCIAL  PRINCIPLES  OF  EDUCATION 

In  the  reconstruction  of  experience,  or  the  develop- 
ment of  the  self,  there  is  always  some  set  of  forces  acting 
_  .  ,  to  control  the  direction  of  this  reconstruc- 

Social  and  .  . 

individual  tion.    The  question  therefore  becomes  that 

sources  of  of  |-ne  source  and  nature  of  this  control. 
At  first  in  the  life  of  the  child  the  control 
is  almost  wholly  social  and  but  very  little  individual. 
If  proper  development  goes  on,  this  proportion  changes 
and  control  becomes  more  largely  individual  and  less 
social.  Development  thus  implies  a  growing  control  by 
the  individual  over  the  processes  of  his  own  experience. 
But  as  control  is  always  exercised  with  reference  to  the 
demands  of  environment,  and  as  the  child's  environment 
is  chiefly  social,  this  control  is  always  exercised  with 
reference  to  an  increasing  consciousness  of  social  values; 
that  is,  of  social  standards,  interpretations,  and  plans  of 
action.  Education  may  therefore  be  de- 
education!11  °f  fined  as  the  progressive  reconstruction  of  ex- 
perience, with  a  growing  consciousness  of 
social  values  and  an  increasing  control  over  the  processes 
of  experience. 

The  growth  of  control  is  a  chief  aspect  of  education, 
if  indeed  it  may  not  be  taken  as  its  measure.  Only  when 
_  __  .  the  individual  has  obtained  command  over 

Growth  of  .      . 

control  a  his  own  powers  and  resources  and  within 

measure  of         certain  natural  and  necessary  limitations 

education.  r    "  ui  i-          u-  u     u 

is  able  to  shape  his  own  course,  can  he  be 
said  to  be  educated.  Lacking  this  power,  he  is  the  mere 
creature  of  environment,  moulded  and  shaped,  and  his 
course  set  by  the  influences  that  play  upon  him.  This 
definition  of  education  implies  the  necessity  for  adjust- 
ment to  environment,  but  it  does  more;  for  it  requires 
that  the  adjustment  shall  be  self-controlled  and  not 


THE  POWERS  OF  THE  INDIVIDUAL          165 

dominated  by  external  forces.    Power  of  control  is  there- 
fore at  once  the  aim  and  the  test  of  education. 

Control  involves  both  of  the  two  great  orders,  the  self 
and  the  not-self.  We  may  then  consider  (i)  control  over 

TWO  directions    tne  se^>  anc^  (2)  contr°l  °ver  the  environ- 
to  be  taken        ment.    While  these  two  types  of  control  go 

hand  in  hand,  and  are  seldom  or  never 
divorced  in  experience,  yet  it  may  be  said  that,  roughly, 
control  over  the  self  means  adjustment,  and  that  control 
over  the  environment  means  progress. 

Man  has  behind  him  a  splendid  record  of  achievement. 
Finding  the  world  of  nature  a  wilderness,  he  has  made  it 
Control  a  garden.  The  mighty  forces  around  him, 

(0  over  whose  nature  and  import  were  unknown, 

he  has  mastered  and  put  to  his  own  uses. 
The  rigors  of  climate  have  given  way,  space  has  been  con- 
quered, disease  has  been  subdued,  and  a  thousand  other 
wonders  accomplished.  But  man's  greatest  problem  was 
not,  after  all,  this  mastery  of  the  not-self;  his  supreme 
test  was  and  is  in  the  mastery  of  the  self. 

This  must  of  necessity  be  true  because  man  himself  is 
the  highest  and  most  complex  form  of  creation  existing 
in  the  world,  the  master  and  leader  of  all  the  rest.  If 
man  would  attain  his  high  destiny,  he  must  not  only 
rightly  conceive  the  remainder  of  the  world,  but  also 
himself;  he  must  not  only  know,  but  must  know  the 
knower.  He  must  not  only  control,  but  must  control 
the  one  who  directs. 

And  man  naturally  comes  to  study  and 

understand  himself  last.  The  great  not-self 

insistently  presses  upon  him  and  demands 
attention.  Hunger  attacks  him,  and  he  must  work 
out  the  problem  of  a  food  supply.  The  cold  freezes 


166         SOCIAL  PRINCIPLES  OF  EDUCATION 

him,  and  he  must  provide  for  shelter  and  clothing.  The 
perceptual  world  challenges  him,  and  he  starts  to  un- 
ravelling nature's  secrets.  Insistent  impulses  throb 
within  him,  and  he  woos  a  mate  and  cares  for  a  family. 
He  at  first  takes  himself  for  granted;  immediate  neces- 
sities fill  his  time  and  occupy  his  thought.  Only  when  a 
certain  degree  of  mastery  has  been  attained  over  the  not- 
self  does  man  take  occasion  to  consider  the  self  as  dis- 
tinct from  the  external  order  and  reflect  on  its  place  in 
the  world. 

It  is  true  that  in  securing  control  over  his  environment, 
man  has  also  been  developing  control  over  the  self.    This 
Mastery  of         must  needs  be  the  case;  nor  could  control 
self  the  great      over  the  self  be  secured  in  any  other  way 
im'  than  through  first  employing  its  powers  in 

the  mastery  of  the  not-self.  But  even  so,  progress  in  con- 
trol over  the  self  attained  in  this  indirect  way  is  haphazard 
and  uncertain  because  it  lacks  aim;  it  wavers,  because 
it  lacks  the  steadying  power  of  a  reflective  purpose.  Man 
will  not  reach  his  goal  without  a  more  complete  knowl- 
edge and  mastery  of  himself.  The  world  of  self,  which 
has  waited  till  the  last  for  study  and  explanation,  offers 
greater  difficulties  and  promises  larger  rewards  than  be- 
long to  the  world  of  the  not-self. 

Nor  does  control  over  the  self  imply  holding  the  reins 
or  the  whip  over  some  vague  entity  that  exists  only  as 

a  figment  of  the  imagination  or  the  product 
o?seif-eco™troi.  °f  theorizing.  It  is  rather  to  direct  a  set  of 

powers  and  capacities  as  they  are  em- 
ployed in  the  course  of  daily  experience,  realizing  them- 
selves and  making  their  contribution  to  the  social  welfare. 
It  may  to-day  mean  a  positive  control,  inciting  to  action 
and  achievement;  to-morrow  it  may  mean  a  negative 


167 

control  exercised  to  check  impulses  or  tendencies  that 
should  not  be  allowed  expression.  Now  it  may  require 
bringing  the  self  into  conformity  with  social  standards 
and  usages;  another  time  it  may  require  independence  of 
judgment  and  the  violation  of  social  conventions  that 
hamper  progress.  On  one  occasion  the  necessity  for  con- 
trol may  concern  chiefly  the  physical  powers  and  activi- 
ties, leading  to  hygienic  living,  longevity,  and  increased 
efficiency.  Another  time  it  may  involve  the  development 
or  use  of  mental  powers,  looking  toward  the  elimination 
of  waste  in  time  and  effort.  Again  it  may  be  a  ques- 
tion of  right  and  wrong,  requiring  ethical  or  moral  judg- 
ment and  involving  social  conduct.  But  whatever  direc- 
tion control  may  take,  it  has  to  do  with  a  real  self,  busied 
with  the  activities  that  go  to  make  up  the  experience 
process.  Further,  it  is  a  social  self,  for  the  activities  by 
which  the  self  finds  expression  are  social  activities.  Con- 
trol over  the  self  has  its  standards  set,  therefore,  and  its 
necessities  dictated  largely  by  social  demands. 

The  self  of  which  we  are  speaking  is  pre-eminently  a 
unity,  and  does  not  consist  of  physical  and  mental  and 

moral  nature  as  disparate  elements  going 
the^eif.  °  m  some  waY  to  make  up  a  discrete  whole. 

It  follows  therefore  that  control  of  the  self 
is  a  unitary  control,  and  does  not  consist  of  physical  con- 
trol plus  mental  control  plus  moral  control.  Having  this 
unity  in  mind,  it  will  be  convenient  to  speak  separately 
of  the  different  phases  of  control  over  the  self. 
The  physical  Both  biologically  and  socially  the  most 

phase  of  the       fundamental  phase  of  control  over  the  self 

is  that  exercised  over  the  physical.  The 
body  is  but  a  machine,  but  it  is  a  living  machine.  Fur- 
ther, it  is  the  machine  upon  which  the  mind  must  depend 


168         SOCIAL  PRINCIPLES  OF  EDUCATION 

to  gather  the  raw  material  for  its  thought,  serve  in  the 
elaboration  of  this  material,  and  carry  its  projects  out 
to  accomplishment.  The  mind  is  therefore  subject  to 
the  limitations  of  this  physical  machine,  profiting  by  its 
strength  and  excellence,  or  crippled  by  its  weakness  and 
inefficiency.  This  machine  has  from  the  beginning  all  its 
parts,  but  at  first  they  exist  only  in  embryo;  they  are 
rough  hewn  and  imperfect,  requiring  opportunity  for 
growth  and  development  through  many  years. 

The  physical  machine  is  subject  to  disease  and  death, 
and  therefore  requires  the  most  careful  attention  as  to 
food,  surroundings,  and  habits  of  life.  It  is  more  com- 
plex by  far  than  any  other  machine  in  the  world,  and 
hence  not  only  presents  great  difficulty  in  bringing  its 
various  parts  into  correlation  with  each  other,  but  it  is 
easily  thrown  out  of  adjustment.  A  good  example  of  its 
complexity  is  found  in  the  brain.  Of  all  parts  of  the 
body,  this  organ  is  the  most  carefully  shut  away  from  the 
external  world;  yet  it  must  have  full  information  of  what 
is  going  on  in  the  world  outside  itself,  and  must  direct 
activities  with  reference  to  external  objects  and  events. 
The  neurones,  which  constitute  the  functional  part  of 
the  brain,  are  so  minute  that  their  diameter  is  invisible 
to  the  eye.  Their  number  is  so  great  that  if  their  fibres 
were  all  represented  by  wires  so  fine  as  to  be  barely  visi- 
ble to  the  eye,  and  set  in  a  model  of  the  brain  made  large 
enough  to  receive  a  number  equal  to  the  neurones  of  the 
brain,  the  base  of  the  model  would  need  to  cover  nearly 
an  average  city  block.  Yet  each  of  these  minute  living 
threads  has  its  own  work  to  perform,  and  must  unerringly 
carry  out  its  .function.  Let  them  fail  ever  so  little  and 
the  memory  begins  to  play  tricks,  the  percepts  turn  out 
to  be  illusions,  judgment  proves  untrustworthy,  feeling 


THE  POWERS  OF  THE  INDIVIDUAL          169 

plays  false,  and  reason  becomes  muddled.  Surely,  from 
the  important  part  played  by  the  physical  machine  in 
man's  destiny,  it  is  incumbent  upon  him  thoroughly  to 
understand  his  body,  and  learn  so  to  control  it  that  he 
shall  be  its  master  instead  of  its  slave. 

Bodily  health  and  vigor  are  fundamental  to  all  success 
and  happiness.  Nothing  can  take  their  place,  and  noth- 
......  ing  can  atone  for  their  loss;  yet  they  are 

Man's  victory          ,•          ,,,,.,,  P       ,         .  . 

and  failure  in      often  held  lightly,  and  are  freely  given  in 


exchange  for  wealth,  pleasure,  or  position. 

Sickness  is  still  by  many  looked  upon  as  in- 
evitable, to  be  patiently  endured  when  it  comes,  and 
thankfully  recovered  from  when  it  passes,  or  resignedly 
submitted  to  when  it  claims  its  victim.  That  man  has  it 
fully  within  his  power  to  eliminate  far  the  greater  part  of 
the  physical  ills  that  now  prevail  does  not  admit  of  doubt. 
He  knows  enough  of  the  structure  of  his  body  and  the 
laws  that  govern  its  functions  to  be  living  much  longer 
and  more  efficiently  than  he  is  now  doing.  Tuberculosis  is 
both  preventable  and  curable,  yet  it  is  annually  claiming 
its  toll  of  victims  in  the  prime  of  life.  Typhoid  fever 
exists  only  as  a  result  of  carelessness.  Pneumonia  finds 
the  greater  part  of  its  victims  among  those  who  shut 
themselves  from  pure  air.  And  so  we  might  go  on  until 
we  had  catalogued  most  of  the  diseases  that  are  re- 
sponsible for  premature  deaths.  Only  a  few  have  so  far 
baffled  the  scientist's  skill  and  are  pronounced  incurable. 
The  rest  exist  by  sufferance.  They  are  an  evidence  of 
man's  lack  of  control  with  reference  to  his  body  and  its 
welfare.  In  part  the  responsibility  lies  with  the  indi- 
vidual, who  must  himself  conform  to  the  laws  of  personal 
hygiene  if  he  would  come  into  control  of  his  body;  in 
part  the  responsibility  lies  with  society  in  its  collective 


170         SOCIAL  PRINCIPLES  OF  EDUCATION 

control  of  the  conditions  of  health.  But  in  either  case 
the  problem  is  one  of  control  through  factors  already 
possessed,  both  by  the  individual  and  society. 

After  those  features  of  control  over  the  physical  self 
that  are  to  be  exercised  with  reference  to  the  health, 
Control  through  growth,  and  general  efficiency  of  the  body, 
power  of  ez-  the  most  important  phase  of  control  has  to 
do  with  physical  powers  of  expression.  The 
self  is  essentially  an  active  self.  It  is  dynamic,  knowing 
no  moment  of  rest  and  inaction.  It  is  what  it  is  doing 
at  any  moment,  and  its  ultimate  constitution  is  the  re- 
sultant of  all  its  acts.  Activity  is  the  mode  of  its  realiza- 
tion, the  method  of  its  development,  the  means  by  which 
it  achieves  and  reconstructs  its  experience. 

The  activities  of  the  self  are  synonymous  with  self- 
expression.  Expression  is,  therefore,  the  true  definition 

Expression  the  °^  ^e  se^ >  t^ie  measure  of  its  development, 
true  definition  and  the  means  of  its  growth.  Expression 
is  also  the  end  whither  all  impressions  are 
tending.  This  is  their  logical  outcome,  and  their  only  ex- 
planation. Not  leading  to  expression,  impressions  would 
have  no  function,  and  hence  no  meaning.  Impression 
and  expression  are  the  terminal  aspects  of  one  unitary 
act,  of  which  interpretation  is  the  middle  term.  Just  as 
there  can  be  no  end  without  a  beginning,  so  there  can 
be  no  expression  without  impression.  And,  also,  just  as 
beginning  and  end  are  lacking  in  meaning  or  significance 
without  reality  in  between,  so  impression  and  expression 
have  no  significance  without  interpretation  to  mediate 
between  them.  In  other  words,  expression  must  be  ade- 
quately directed  with  reference  to  the  situations  which 
give  it  rise,  if  the  individual  is  to  exercise  control  over 
the  processes  of  his  own  experience. 


THE  POWERS  OF  THE  INDIVIDUAL          171 

While  the  self  has  two  aspects,  physical  and  mental, 
both  of  which  manifest  themselves  through  expression, 
The  physical  ^e  physical  is  the  ultimate  vehicle  of  ex- 
the  vehicle  of  pression.  For  the  mind  cannot  reveal  itself 
expression.  directly,  but  is  dependent  on  the  body  to 
make  itself  known  or  to  manifest  its  particular  states. 
The  only  mind  that  one  can  know  at  first  hand  is  his 
own.  Each  mind  is  in  a  sense  a  prisoner  within  the  body, 
and  allowed  to  speak  to  others  only  through  the  mes- 
sengers of  the  body — the  lips,  the  face,  the  form,  and 
gesture.  Not  only  is  expression,  therefore,  the  mode  of 
the  self's  development,  but  it  is  the  only  means  by  which 
the  self  can  bring  its  powers  to  bear  or  make  its  influence 
felt.  Society  little  cares  and  nothing  profits  by  thoughts 
or  feelings  which  are  unexpressed. 

The  modes  of  physical  expression  are  as  many  as  the 
different  acts  which  the  body  is  capable  of  performing. 
Different  The  products  of  physical  expression  are  as 

modes  of  phys-  manifold  as  the  material  achievements  of 
expression.  C[v[][z2i^{on  Because  of  this  complexity 
and  the  interrelations  among  the  different  forms  of  phys- 
ical expression,  it  is  impossible  to  set  up  any  simple, 
logical  classification  that  will  include  all  the  forms  of 
expression  without  overlapping.  It  may  be  serviceable, 
however,  to  observe  the  following  classification:  Expres- 
sion (i)  through  the  medium  of  the  body;  (2)  through 
the  medium  of  the  hand;  and  (3)  through  the  medium 
of  speech. 

While  of  course  both  speech  and  handi- 
craft  afe  forms  of  physical  expression,  yet 
there  is  a  sense  in  which  the  body  acts 
more  or  less  as  a  unit  in  expression.  In  another  sense  it 
acts  on  the  principle  of  division  of  labor,  and  sets  apart 


172         SOCIAL  PRINCIPLES  OF  EDUCATION 

certain  organs  for  highly  specialized  and  important  func- 
tions. Thus  the  body  acting  as  a  unit  expresses  elation 
or  dejection  by  its  carriage  or  poise;  the  hand,  acting  as 
a  specialized  organ,  is  responsible  for  the  creation  of 
material  civilization;  the  tongue,  acting  as  a  specialized 
organ,  mediates  speech  and  makes  possible  the  inter- 
communication of  thought. 

It  may  be  said  that,  in  general,  bodily  expression 

mediates  attitudes  of  mind  and  emotional  states  rather 

than   thought.     Indeed,   modern   theories 

Bodily  expres-  °.  .     . 

sion  mediates     of  the  emotions  have  shown  that  it  is  the 


expression  of  the  entire  organism  hi  re- 
sponse to  some  interpretation  of  an  im- 
pression that  produces  the  emotional  state.  The  emo- 
tion which  thus  has  its  origin  in  a  general  organic 
expression  may  terminate  in  a  similar  general  expres- 
sion of  the  entire  body,  or  may  take  the  form  of  speech, 
manual  or  other  specialized  expression. 

Certain  forms  of  expression  terminate,  so  far  as  their 

immediate  effects  go,  within  the  organism  itself.    The 

.     .    .   ,       expressions  are  too  delicate  or  too  much 

The  physical  .  , 

reveals  the         hidden  to  be  observable  to  those  about  us, 
history  of  the      but  fay  are  not  on  that  account  less  im- 

individual.  \  . 

portant  in  their  effects.  For  example,  one 
may  find  himself  in  an  environment  that  oppresses  him, 
and  yet  give  no  outward  sign  of  his  suffering;  face  and 
form  finally  come,  however,  to  tell  the  story.  The  his- 
tory of  generations  of  serfdom  is  written  large  in  the 
physical  heaviness  and  lack  of  expression  of  the  Russian 
peasants,  while  the  freedom  of  the  Anglo-Saxon  is  to  be 
read  in  his  alertness  and  the  firmness  of  his  step.  The 
physical  is  ultimately  a  picture  of  the  mental  projected 
upon  the  screen  of  our  senses. 


THE  POWERS  OF  THE  INDIVIDUAL          173 

Bodily  poise,  therefore,  both  indicates  and  tends  to 
produce  mental  states.  The  calm  and  steady  poise,  the 
confident  step,  the  unabashed  eye,  the  alert 
expression  carriage,  not  only  speak  of  a  masterful  at- 
indicates  and  titude  of  mind,  but  also  react  upon  the 
^tue"8mental  mental  state  as  well.  On  the  other  hand, 
the  dejected  form,  the  ambling  carriage, 
the  shifty  eye,  speak  with  equal  plainness  of  an  uncertain, 
uncontrolled,  and  vacillating  attitude  of  mind,  and  like- 
wise tend  to  produce  or  continue  this  very  attitude  of 
mind. 

The  face  is  the  most  expressive  part  of  the  organism, 
and  therefore  is  quickest  to  show  forth  mental  condi- 
tions.   Hence  it  is  that  the  mind's  states 

The  face.  . 

are  so  clearly  revealed  in  its  changing  ex- 
pressions. Nor  is  it  strange  that  characteristic  mental 
states,  such  as  discouragement,  dissatisfaction,  pessimism, 
or,  on  the  other  hand,  cheerfulness  and  happiness,  should 
leave  their  permanent  stamp  on  the  face. 

Gesture  is  a  form  of  bodily  expression  that  has  its  rise 
early,  both  in  the  race  and  the  individual.  Primitive 
peoples,  before  they  have  developed  artic- 
ulate speech,  converse  through  gestures. 
Children  gesture  freely  in  attempting  to  express  them- 
selves. Gesture  remains  one  of  the  most  effective  of  the 
arts  of  the  orator,  especially  when  he  wishes  to  express 
mental  attitudes  or  emotional  states.  Its  loss  from  most 
of  our  conversation  and  much  of  our  public  speaking 
cannot  but  mean  some  loss  in  the  ability  fully  to  ex- 
press the  self. 

Dramatic  expression  or  acting  is  but  an- 
other form  of  bodily  expression.    It  implies 
a  high  degree  of  harmony  in  all  the  forms  of  physical  ex- 


174         SOCIAL  PRINCIPLES  OF  EDUCATION 

pression,  such  as  form,  poise  and  carriage,  face,  gesture, 
and  voice,  in  order  to  bring  out  fully  some  striking  situa- 
tion. This  form  of  expression  is  as  old  as  the  race,  and 
the  impulse  to  its  use  rises  early  in  the  life  of  every  child. 
That  people  understand  its  language  and  are  impressed 
by  its  effect  is  seen  in  the  universal  response  to  dramatic 
acting  in  all  its  forms. 

Speech  is  one  of  the  specialized  forms  of  expression 

mentioned  above.    It  may  be  divided  into  two  classes, 

natural    or   inarticulate    speech,    such    as 

Expression         laughter  and  crying ;  and  artificial  or  articu- 

through  \ 

speech.  late  speech,  or  language  proper.    Laughter 

and  crying  are  among  the  earliest  forms  of 
speech,  both  in  developing  societies  and  among  children. 
Long  before  the  savage  had  developed  a  language,  he 
used  the  cry  and  the  laugh  to  indicate  his  emotional 
states;  and  long  before  the  child  knows  the  language  of 
his  social  group,  he  speaks  this  common  language  of 
humanity.  Laughter  and  crying  are  not  suited  for  the 
transmission  of  ideas,  but  belong  to  the  lower  form  of 
transmission  of  mental  attitudes  and  emotions.  As  civ- 
ilization and  spoken  language  have  developed,  greater 
control  has  come  to  be  exercised  over  these  two  forms 
of  speech  and  social  restraint  has  been  placed  upon  un- 
due use  of  either. 

Artificial  speech,  or  articulate  language,  arises  when  a 
people  have  developed  far  enough  that  they  have  rela- 
tively complex  ideas  to  transmit  to  others. 
Whereas  cries  stood  for  emotional  states, 
words,  stand  for  ideas  and  thoughts.  So 
closely  related  is  language  to  ideas  and  thoughts,  that  we 
have  uniformly  come  to  think  in  terms  of  articulate 
speech,  and  can  hardly  understand  to-day  how  it  would 


THE  POWERS  OF  THE  INDIVIDUAL          175 

be  possible  to  carry  on  a  mental  life  at  all  without  this 
medium,  not  only  for  its  expression,  but  also  in  which  to 
house  its  content.  Inability  in  the  use  of  speech  means, 
therefore,  not  only  a  handicap  in  the  way  of  expression, 
but  likewise  a  handicap  in  the  vehicle  of  thought.  He 
who  lacks  words  must  in  some  degree  lack  thoughts. 

But  words  are  not  limited  to  expressing  ideas  alone. 
They,  along  with  laughter  and  crying  and  the  forms 
_  .  .  of  bodily  expression,  stand  for  emotional 

Command  of  ..,.., 

speech  as  a  states  or  attitudes  of  mind  as  well ;  and  not 
measure  of  the  a  smau  proportion  of  the  words  of  our 

mental  life.  ,    ,  ,         ,     . 

speech  have  for  their  content  an  emotional 
meaning  rather  than  a  thought  meaning.  Therefore,  ar- 
ticulate speech  serves  as  a  vehicle  and  at  the  same  time 
as  a  mode  of  expression  for  impressions  and  interpreta- 
tions of  every  kind.  In  other  words,  our  command  of 
speech  measures  the  range,  scope,  quality  of  our  mental 
life. 

The  hand  is  another  specialized  organ  of  expression. 
To  it,  more  than  any  other  part  of  the  body,  man  owes 
Expression  ^is  superiority  over  the  animal  kingdom, 
through  the  Even  if  it  were  possible  to  give  man  the 
mind  that  he  has,  and  all  of  the  body  ex- 
cepting the  hand,  he  would  be  very  far  from  able  to 
accomplish  the  civilization  that  to-day  exists.  Deprive 
man  of  the  hand  and  the  world  would  lose  all  of  its  art 
and  a  large  part  of  its  science  and  handicraft.  The  in- 
dustries would  all  have  to  be  made  over  and  man  would 
find  himself  but  very  little  above  the  scale  of  the  ani- 
mals in  his  actual  accomplishment  of  material  civiliza- 
tion. The  hand  is  pre-eminently  the  tool  of  the  mind 
in  carrying  out  its  finest  conceptions,  whether  this  be 
in  the  form  of  art,  manual  skill,  or  mechanical  con- 
struction of  any  kind. 


176         SOCIAL  PRINCIPLES  OF  EDUCATION 

Add  to  this  the  fact  that  the  mind  itself  is  developed 

through  its  various  forms  of  expression,  and  we  see  another 

important  relation  which  the  hand  and  its 

Relation  of  r  ,  .    .        .  T.  .     . 

manual  arts  bear  to  mental  development.    If  it  is 


expression  to      j^g  fa^t  the  mind  of  man  has  grown  up 

not  only  along  with  his  advance  in  material 

civilization,  but  also  because  of  this  advance,  and  further, 

if  the  hand  has  played  so  important  a  part  as  we  have 

seen  in  constructing  this  material  civilization,  then  indeed 

the  hand  is  an  indispensable  servant  of  the  mind;  and  to 

train  the  hand  is  not  merely  to  make  the  fingers  able  to 

draw  more  accurately,  to  manipulate  the  keyboard  with 

more  precision,  or  to  drive  the  saw  with  greater  effec- 

tiveness; but  it  is  also  to  give  breadth  and  scope  to  the 

mind's  grasp,  and  to  train  it  in  the  processes  of  thought. 

The  expression  side  of  education  has  long  been  neglected, 

and  even  now  is  not  receiving  the  -attention  that  its  im- 

portance demands.    Too  long  has  education 

Neglect  of  r     •    • 

the  expression     been  looked  upon  as  a  process  of  giving  im- 
6i(f  e  °ti  pressions,  with  perhaps  a  partial  interpre- 

tation of  these  impressions.  Only  hi  com- 
paratively recent  years  has  there  been  a  wide-spread 
movement  for  carrying  education  out  to  its  ultimate  con- 
clusion, namely,  the  realization  of  the  full  significance 
of  impressions  and  interpretations  through  expressing 
them  by  means  of  the  various  forms  of  bodily  expression, 
or  through  speech  and  through  the  arts  of  the  hand. 

Control  over  the  mental  powers  and  activities  presents 
even  greater  problems  than  control  over  the  physical. 
_  ^  ,  The  mind  at  birth  has  implicit  within  itself 

Control  / 

through  the        all  the  powers  that  will  characterize  the 
men^a!  individual  at  his  fullest  and  richest  develop- 

activities.  1. 

ment.  Education  creates  no  power.  It 
only  seeks,  through  conforming  to  the  law  inherent  in 


THE  POWERS  OF  THE  INDIVIDUAL          177 

mind  itself,  to  transform  potential  powers  into  actual 
powers,  and,  in  the  process,  to  give  the  individual  control 
over  these  powers. 

The  mind  at  birth  is  as  undeveloped  and  helpless  as  the 
body.  It  has  few  of  the  senses.  Perception  is  an  unlearned 
Genetic  ar^-  Memory  has  no  material.  Imagina- 

deveiopment       tion  has  not  yet  awakened.      Thought  is 


lemin.  impossible.  Feeling  is  vague.  Yet  from 
this  small  beginning  the  mind  must  construct  a  perceptual 
world  of  almost  infinite  variety.  Memory  must  carry 
a  great  mass  of  useful  information.  A  system  of  concepts 
must  be  developed  and  built  into  an  organic  thought 
structure  to  whose  grasp  nothing  seems  foreign  or  im- 
possible. Commanding  impulses  and  emotions  must  arise 
and  take  their  place  in  a  great  system  of  motives  that 
urge  and  drive  and  are  yet  under  control.  All  this  must 
be  so  worked  out  that  every  power  has  its  opportunity 
for  development,  and  yet  each  must  be  brought  into  har- 
mony with  the  other,  and  the  whole  made  responsive  to 
the  needs  of  the  individual. 

The  problem  of  control  of  the  mind  is  primarily  a 

problem  of  interest  and  attention.    Only  the  thoughts 

that  stand  in  the  focus  of  attention  have 

attention""1       sufficient  vitality  to  eventuate  in  action. 

primary  Those  that  hover  on  the  outskirts  of  con- 

factors  in  •  e  •  i 

mental  control,    sciousness  are  of  importance  only  as  pos- 

sible claimants  for  a  focal  position.  But 
every  thought  that  stands  fully  within  the  centre  of  the 
mind's  gaze  is  a  force  to  be  reckoned  with.  For  it  fuses 
with  the  mental  elements  already  in  our  possession,  and 
in  some  degree  modifies  them;  it  forms  associations  with 
other  trains  of  thought,  and  thus  becomes  a  part  of  our 
thought  material;  it  stimulates  to  action  and  modifies 


178         SOCIAL  PRINCIPLES  OF  EDUCATION 

our  conduct.  In  the  end  the  prevailing  trend  and  char- 
acter of  our  thought  gauges  the  direction  and  results  of 
our  deeds. 

Attention  determines  our  environment.  Environment 
does  not  consist  in  the  things  that  are  in  physical  prox- 
Attention  imity,  but  of  the  things  that  are  attended 

defines  to.  All  that  lies  outside  the  scope  of  a 

'nt'  mind's  attention  does  not  exist  for  that  par- 
ticular mind.  Each  person  therefore  creates  his  own 
world  of  environment  through  the  things  to  which  he 
attends.  It  therefore  follows  that  in  just  so  far  as  one 
can  direct  his  attention  he  can  determine  the  character 
of  all  impressions  received,  all  interpretations  made  and 
all  expressions  that  result. 

Attention  thus  becomes  the  great  factor  in  mental 
control.  If,  through  trained  interests,  natural  aptitudes, 
Attention  anc^  heroic  effort,  attention  is  brought  to 

determines  bear  on  lines  of  activity  that  lead  to  achieve- 

achievement        ment,  £ne  Outcome  is  SCCUre.     The  prOCCSSCS 

of  experience  will  be  brought  more  and  more  within  the 
individual's  control.  If,  on  the  other  hand,  attention 
is  capricious,  if  it  follows  every  will-o'-the-wisp  without 
regard  to  values,  if  it  has  a  tendency  to  focus  on  lines 
of  activity  of  doubtful  value,  the  individual  is  drifting 
toward  the  necessity  of  external  control  and  cannot  be 
the  master  of  his  own  experiences. 

In  the  economy  of  development  attention  is  brought 
to  bear  only  at  the  crucial  points  of  experience.  It 
.~  *.  emerges  where  the  humdrum  routine  of 

Attention 

attaches  to  the    experience  is  broken  into  and  a  reconstruc- 


cruciai  points      fiou  of  experience  demanded.     It  is  this 

of  experience.  .  ... 

fact  that  makes  a  varied  and  a  variable 
environment  indispensable  to  evolution.    Primitive  man 


THE  POWERS  OF  THE  INDIVIDUAL          179 

is  confronted  with  a  change  in  climate,  and  must  make  for 
himself  clothing  and  a  house  or  perish.  He  must  recon- 
struct his  experience  at  this  point;  attention  is  demanded. 
The  railway  is  pushed  to  the  foot  of  the  mountain  and 
cannot  go  over;  a  tunnel  must  be  put  through.  Again 
attention  is  demanded.  A  city's  water  supply  is  con- 
taminated; attention  to  its  purification  is  necessary  in 
order  to  save  the  lives  of  its  inhabitants. 

In  youth,  the  crucial  points  of  experience  come  thick 
and  fast.  All  is  new  and  experience  must  be  recon- 
Demands  upon  ftructed  continuously  and  with  great  rapid- 
attention  in  ity.  The  child  has  hardly  become  oriented 
in  a  home  before  he  is  pushed  out  into  a 
wider  community  and  a  new  world  where  he  must  read- 
just himself.  This  done,  he  is  sent  to  school,  where  again 
he  must  reconstruct  his  experience  by  learning  new  sym- 
bols of  knowledge.  Physical  nature  is  a  perceptual  chal- 
lenge to  his  attention;  society  constantly  appeals  to 
him;  he  meets  one  of  the  other  sex  and  the  whole  world 
of  values  is  upset;  the  consciousness  of  self  emerges, 
and  a  troop  of  social,  moral,  and  religious  problems 
demands  solution.  No  wonder  that  youth  is  alert  and 
on  the  qui  vive,  with  so  much  claiming  attention.  The 
great  problem  is  to  train  the  attention  to  deal  with  the 
permanent  and  valuable  instead  of  with  the  ephemeral 
and  cheap. 

The  natural  tendency  of  all  activity  is  to  become 
automatic,  and  hence  to  release  attention  from  its  direc- 
Tendency  ^on.  Hence  the  oft  repeated  becomes 

toward  common  and  attention  loosens  its  grip. 

An  environment  that  once  held  the  atten- 
tion chained  to  its  wonders  or  beauty  may  finally  fail 
to  claim  notice.  Situations  and  associations  that  at  one 


180         SOCIAL  PRINCIPLES  OF  EDUCATION 

time  enthralled  the  attention  are  later  taken  as  a  matter 
of  fact.  Wordsworth  complains  that  as  he  grew  older 
a  glory  had  passed  from  the  earth.  All  this  is,  of  course, 
the  very  essence  of  old  fogyism.  This  danger  is  the  price 
we  pay  for  the  privilege  of  making  our  reactions  auto- 
matic. 

The  aim  in  this  connection  is  to  save  interest  from  fad- 
ing out,  to  keep  experience  from  becoming  encrusted 
Appeal  to  and  falling  into  a  rut.  On  the  positive  side, 

interest  the  problem  is  to  keep  experience  in  a  state 

of  reconstruction.  And  this  requires  new 
incentives  for  attention.  As  the  old  no  longer  demands 
attention,  new  interests  are  to  be  sought;  as  one  aspect 
of  experience  becomes  commonplace,  new  phases  are  to 
be  discovered;  when  a  line  of  activity  has  become  auto- 
matic, new  lines  are  to  be  taken  up,  or  the  old  modified 
by  improving  it. 

Attention  is  for  all  practical  purposes  synonymous 
with  interest.  Hence  it  follows  that  worthy  interests 
Necessity  for  rnean  attention  to  worthy  thoughts.  A 
broad  scope  broad  scope  of  interests  permits  a  wide 
f  interests.  range  of  attention,  and  thus  saves  the 
mind  from  settling  down  to  a  dead  level  of  uniformity. 
Permanent  interests,  those  that  continue  to  grow  in- 
stead of  soon  dropping  out,  supply  a  lasting  basis  for 
attention.  The  cultivation  of  a  worthy,  broad,  permanent 
set  of  interests  therefore  becomes  one  of  the  most  neces- 
sary factors  in  securing  control  over  the  self.  Educa- 
tion has  no  more  important  problem  than  to  shape  the 
direction  and  give  quality  to  the  interests  which  domi- 
nate the  individual's  attention. 

Ability  to  control  conduct  is  probably  the  severest 
test  placed  upon  the  individual  in  his  attempt  to  control 


THE  POWERS  OF  THE  INDIVIDUAL         181 

the  self.  The  self  has  not  only  its  physical  aspect  and 
its  mental  aspect,  but  also  a  moral  aspect.  Man  con- 
The  problem  ceives  the  difference  between  good  and 
of  moral  con-  evil  and  between  right  and  wrong.  He 
5self-  can  feel  and  say,  "I  ought."  This  places 
upon  him  the  responsibility  of  adjusting  his  conduct 
with  reference  to  certain  standards  or  demands. 

The  standards  or  demands  that  constitute  the  motives 

or  criteria  of  conduct  arise  at  three  different  levels  of 

experience:   the  instinctive,  the  social,  and 

ofhconduct.1S       tne  personal,  or  reflective.     The  problem, 

approached  from  any  one  of  these  three 

levels,  is  the  same.    It  concerns  the  difference  between 

right  and  wrong,  between  good  and  bad,  as  relates  to 

conduct. 

Conduct   that  is  dictated  by  instinctive  tendencies 
usually  has  to  do  with  the  satisfying  of  the  more  funda- 
mental needs  of  the  organism,  and  does  not 

Instinctive 

tendencies         go  far  enough  to  cover  the  problems  ans- 
as  a  guide          mg  out  of  tne  more  complex  social  rela- 

to  conduct.  .  .  .          . 

tions.  Conduct  arising  from  this  source 
may  be  entirely  ethical  in  its  character  and  yet  not 
involve  moral  judgments  and  control. 

Certain  lines  of  activity  are  natural  and  the  easy  thing, 
and  are  hence  done  without  thought  and  without  con- 
scious self -compulsion.  It  is  good  and  right  to  work; 
yet  the  motive  prompting  to  labor  does  not  ordinarily 
rise  to  the  level  of  conscious  moral  control.  It  is  also 
good  and  right  to  seek  a  mate,  found  a  home,  and  rear 
a  family;  but  the  impulses  that  prompt  to  these  activi- 
ties are  chiefly  instinctive  and  emotional. 

Conduct  arising  at  the  social  level  is  dictated  by  cus- 
tom. Indeed,  it  was  the  concept  of  control  by  custom 


182         SOCIAL  PRINCIPLES  OF  EDUCATION 

that  gave  us  the  Greek  term  ethics  (ethos),  and  the  Ro- 
man, morals  (mores),  both  of  which  mean  customs.  That 
Social  which  was  according  to  custom  was  right 

control  and  good;  that  is,  moral  and  ethical.    By 

11  uct'  far  the  greater  part  of  our  conduct  to- 
day is  dictated  by  social  customs.  That  to  which  society 
has  given  its  approval  is  right;  what  society  disapproves 
is  wrong.  It  is  evident  that  the  social  standard  is  a  far 
broader  and  safer  one  than  the  instinctive.  For  social 
customs  represent  the  collective  wisdom  of  society 
through  many  generations;  and  what  has  stood  the  test 
of  experience  with  many  people  under  widely  varying 
conditions  cannot  be  wholly  wrong.  And  these  social 
standards  of  morality  are  one  of  society's  greatest  con- 
tributions to  the  individual.  They  give  the  groundwork 
for  any  reflective  system  of  morals. 

But  the  individual  must  rise  to  a  higher  level  of  moral- 
ity than  the  customary,  or  social.  His  morality  must  be- 
Personai  come  personal.  Even  if  he  finally  accepts 

control  the  moral  standards  precisely  as  they  are 

practised  by  his  social  group,  yet  these 
standards  must  be  subjected  to  examination  and  judged 
as  right  or  wrong,  as  good  or  evil,  by  the  individual  him- 
self. They  must  in  this  sense  become  his  own  standards. 
His  morality  must  become  a  personal  and  individual 
matter.  He  must  consciously  intend  a  line  of  conduct 
because  he  feels  it  to  be  right,  or  refuse  it  because  he 
feels  it  to  be  wrong.  Only  in  this  way 'can  he  rise 
to  full  control  of  the  self  and  become  moral  in  the 
highest  sense  of  the  term.  Nor  will  conduct  dictated 
from  this  level  ignore  the  wider  social  interests  and 
demands.  On  the  contrary,  reflective  morality  must 
proceed  from  the  standpoint  of  social  values,  and  the 


THE  POWERS  OF  THE  INDIVIDUAL          183 

good  chosen  will  include  all  individuals;  it  will  be  a 
common  good. 

Although  man  has  developed  a  moral  nature  and  reached 
a  large  degree  of  moral  control  over  the  self,  yet  he  is  not 
Man  not  yet  wholly  master  in  this  realm.  His  conduct  is 
master  of  often  at  variance  with  the  common  good, 

and  even  with  his  own  good.  He  often  is 
found  at  variance  with  the  established  social  morality  of 
his  group,  not  with  the  desire  of  improving  its  standards, 
but  because  of  impatience  with  its  restraints  on  his  con- 
duct. Instinctive  tendencies  that  he  feels  are  wrong  are 
still  given  rein.  Man  has  not  attained  full  control  over 
the  self  in  its  moral  aspect. 

This  lack  of  moral  control  comes  less  from  imperfect 
knowledge  of  right  and  wrong  and  of  good  and  evil  than 
Victory  irom  a  ^ac^  °^  P°wer  to  bring  the  conduct 

requires  into    conformity   with   moral   judgments. 

Man's  instinctive  tendencies  are  partly 
good,  but  they  are  also  partly  evil.  His  impulses  lead 
now  toward  the  right  and  now  toward  the  wrong.  The 
individual  therefore  stands  constantly  in  the  presence 
of  temptation.  When  he  would  do  good,  evil  is  present 
with  him.  And  this  situation,  if  it  is  to  eventuate  in  moral 
freedom,  requires  a  conflict;  victory  cannot  be  won 
without  a  struggle. 

Man  has  come  up  through  ages  of  conflict.  He  loves 
to  combat  the  forces  of  the  not-self,  but  he  still  shrinks 

from  a  struggle  with  the  self;   and  moral 

Man  well  ,  . 

trained  in  freedom  can  be  won  only  in  conflict  with 

conflict  with       the  self  m    Man  has  proved  his  heroism  on 

the  not-self.  ^  .  . 

many  battle-fields,  and  there  is  no  physical 
danger  or  death  that  can  daunt  his  courage.  He  does 
not  flinch  in  the  presence  of  any  seemingly  impossible 


184         SOCIAL  PRINCIPLES  OF  EDUCATION 

task  set  for  his  intellect  to  accomplish.  But  he  is  in 
some  sense  still  a  coward  when  he  confronts  himself. 
Man  shrinks  ^ike  Alexander,  after  he  has  conquered  the 
from  conflict  world,  he  finds  that  he  still  has  himself  to 

conquer.  The  hardest  struggles  and  great- 
est victories  still  ahead  of  the  individual  lie  in  the  field 
of  moral  control  over  the  self.  He  has  not  yet  fully 
realized  in  experience  that  it  is  better  to  rule  the  spirit 
than  to  take  the  city,  and  that  there  is  real  victory  in 
going  the  second  mile  with  him  who  compels  us  to  go  one 
mile. 

One  can  hardly  doubt  that  the  greatest  weakness  in 
our  present  civilization  is  at  the  point  of  moral  control. 

Nor  can  there  be  found  any  other  weakness 

morai°controi  so  ^ata^  *°  ^ne  stability  and  success  of  a 
the  great  democracy.  No  perfection  of  the  ma- 

chinery  of  government,  no  excellence  of 
programme  on  the  part  of  the  social  insti- 
tutions, no  amount  of  increase  hi  national  resources  and 
wealth,  and  no  degree  of  intellectual  culture  and  develop- 
ment on  the  part  of  a  people  can  result  in  permanent 
welfare  and  stable  progress  if  the  moral  element  is  lack- 
ing. It  becomes  one  of  the  first  concerns  of  education, 
therefore,  to  develop  in  the  individual  a  sense  for  moral 
values,  and  to  give  him  the  fullest  possible  control  over 
the  moral  aspects  of  his  experience. 

Man  was  made  to  rule.  He  not  only  adjusts  himself 
to  his  environment,  but  also  makes  his  environment  over 
Control  t^iat  ft  mav  the  better  suit  his  needs  and 

(2)  over  further  his  progress.    He  is  not  only  played 

•  ^  upon  by  external  stimuli,  but  he  is  an  active 
agent  in  determining  the  nature  of  the  stimuli.  He  is  not 
only  moulded,  but  he  modifies.  Mere  adjustment  to 


THE  POWERS  OF  THE  INDIVIDUAL          185 

his  environment  would  never  advance  man  in  social 
progress,  but  would  only  end  in  stagnation  and  leave 
civilization  at  a  standstill.  In  man's  mounting  upward 
toward  the  ideal,  he  has  carried  his  environment  with 
him.  What  he  found  but  seamed  rocks  in  the  hill-side, 
he  has  fashioned  into  the  market-place  and  the  cathedral. 
The  forest  trees  growing  but  to  add  their  substance  to 
the  soil,  man  has  made  into  dwellings  and  their  furnish- 
ings. The  iron  of  the  mine  has  been  built  into  the  ma- 
chine that  will  do  the  work  of  a  thousand  men,  and  the 
pigments  of  the  soil  have  been  spread  on  canvas  in  im- 
mortal works  of  art.  Man  has  domesticated  and  im- 
proved the  wild  animals,  and  made  his  hardly  less  hostile 
brother  of  other  races  than  his  own  a  friend  and  neighbor 
instead  of  an  enemy. 

The  direction  in  which  man  modifies  his  environment 
is  a  sure  index  of  the  trend  being  taken  by  the  develop- 
_  .  ,  ment  of  his  own  powers  and  capacities. 

Control  over  ....... 

environment       The  type  of  material  civilization  created, 

shapes  man's  ancj  fa^  structure  of  social  relationships  de- 
powers. 

veloped  hi  the  social  institutions  and  voca- 
tions, are  but  a  composite  picture  of  the  type  of  impres- 
sions received  from  environment,  the  way  these  are  inter- 
preted in  relation  to  the  social  aim,  and  the  methods 
taken  to  realize  these  interpretations  through  control  of 
the  self  and  its  environment.  It  is  this  fact  that  makes  it 
possible  to  interpret  the  psychology  of  a  people  or  a 
period  through  a  study  of  its  language,  its  art,  its  indus- 
tries, and  its  institutions.  A  comparison  of  Roman  aque- 
ducts and  military  roads  with  Greek  temples  and  statu- 
ary accurately  reflects  the  different  mental  attitudes  of 
the  two  nations  in  interpreting  and  controlling  environ- 
ment with  reference  to  a  social  aim.  The  direction  of 


186         SOCIAL  PRINCIPLES  OF  EDUCATION 

the  present  movement  in  both  material  and  social  lines 
in  America  indicates  a  marked  tendency  to  interpret 
environment  largely  in  economic  terms,  and  to  exercise 
control  toward  this  end. 

As  already  shown,  man's  control  over  his  environment 
is  conditioned  by  the  interpretation  he  puts  upon  it. 
On  the  one  hand,  he  interprets  it  in  terms 
of  knowledge,  leading  to  control  through 
depends  on  technique,  guided  by  science;  on  the  other 
mterpre  hand,  in  terms  of  interest,  leading  to  selec- 

tion, or  the  evaluing  of  stimuli.  The  con- 
sideration of  this  section  can  be  brief,  for  it  is  only  neces- 
sary to  apply  the  principles  already  laid  down. 

Science  has  already  been  discussed  as  an  instrument 
of  control.     But  science  is  only  an  instrument  of  con- 
trol, and  does  not  itself  exert  control.    For 

Control  ...  .  .        .  . 

through  science  is  knowledge;  that  is,  a  mode  o£  in- 

science  and        terpretation,  and  hence  fulfils  its  function 

technique.  ... 

in  pointing  the  way  to  control.  Control  is 
ultimately  a  matter  of  expression  on  the  part  of  the  indi- 
vidual, the  result  of  some  activity,  or  response,  with 
reference  to  a  problem  arising  in  experience.  An  object, 
or  a  situation,  or  making  the  situation  over  to  suit  the 
aim  of  the  individual  creates  a  demand  for  adjustment. 
It  is  at  this  point  that  technique,  or  skill  in  performance, 
arises. 

Just  as  technique  would  be  impossible  and  wholly 
without  avail  except  when  guided  by  science,  so  science 
interrelation  can  eventuate  in  control  only  through  the 
of  science  and  medium  of  technique.  Interpretation  and 

expression  must  go  hand  in  hand.  Knowl- 
edge of  the  laws  underlying  the  science  of  mechanics 
would  be  of  small  social  value  without  the  manual  skill 


THE  POWERS  OF  THE  INDIVIDUAL         187 

to  put  them  into  practice.  All  modern  industries  are 
built  on  a  foundation  of  science,  but  they  also  ^require 
a  highly  trained  technique;  the  factory  must  not  only 
have  its  scientists,  but  its  skilled  workmen.  Modern 
surgery  is  a  great  science,  but  it  is  not  less  a  great  tech- 
nique. Knowledge  is  power  only  when  effectively  ap- 
plied to  the  solution  of  problems  growing  out  of  the  con- 
crete situations  of  experience. 

It  is  not  necessary  to  suggest  the  different  lines  in 
which  man  has  already  modified  the  face  of  nature  through 
Control  ^ne  development  of  science  and  the  appli- 

secured  over  cation  of  skilled  technique.  Hardly  a  day 
passes  that  our  attention  is  not  called  to 
some  new  triumph  of  scientific  discovery,  or  to  the  appli- 
cation of  a  law  of  science  to  the  betterment  of  the  condi- 
tions of  living.  The  history  of  man's  subjugation  of  his 
environment  since  the  days  when  he  was  living  in  tribal 
relations  is  more  wonderful  than  any  fairy  story.  In  that 
day  he  possessed  but  little  clothing  or  shelter,  and  no 
certain  means  of  providing  himself  with  either.  He  had 
no  cities  and  no  means  of  transportation  excepting  what 
nature  had  given  him.  Steam  and  electricity  were  un- 
known. He  lived  under  the  constant  dread  of  sickness 
and  diseases  for  which  he  knew  no  cure.  His  plans  and 
comfort  were  subject  to  every  whim  of  the  weather,  and 
he  could  at  best  coax  but  a  scanty  living  from  the  earth. 
He  was  of  necessity  provincial  and  narrow  in  his  interests 
and  sympathies,  since  he  had  no  means  of  intercommuni- 
cation with  other  peoples.  He  seems  to  us  of  this  better 
day  to  have  lived  very  completely  under  the  domination 
of  hostile  forces,  and  to  have  found  himself  within  the 
control  of  circumstances  beyond  his  power  to  modify. 
Yet  these  conditions  have  been  changed  and  man  is 


188         SOCIAL  PRINCIPLES  OF  EDUCATION 

proving  master  in  the  physical  world,  little  by  little 
securing  control  over  his  material  environment. 

Man  has  also  been  securing  control  in  the  social  realm 
as  well  as  in  the  physical.  He  has  been  developing  a  group 
of  social  sciences  correlatively  with  the 
so°daTreaim.  material  sciences.  Through  much  experi- 
ence and  many  bitter  lessons  he  has  found 
that  cruelty,  oppression,  and  injustice  are  fatal  to  govern- 
ment; and  to-day  we  have  seized  upon  the  concept  of 
democracy,  and  are  attempting  to  learn  its  technique. 
The  organization  of  the  family  has  passed  through  many 
different  stages  and  been  the  subject  of  much  experimen- 
tation, but  the  permanent  monogamous  relation  is  now 
accepted  among  all  civilized  people.  Religious  tolera- 
tion has  supplanted  the  old  system  of  persecution;  the 
incidentals  of  creed  and  church  organization  are  giving 
way,  and  churches  are  learning  to  work  together  on  the 
great  fundamentals  in  a  common  cause.  The  old  hap- 
hazard method  of  education  t>y  means  of  schools  set 
up,  now  by  industrial  guilds,  now  by  individual  churches, 
now  by  towns,  and  again  by  individuals,  has  given  way 
before  the  demand  for  universal  education  supported 
and  controlled  by  the  state.  A  marvellously  complex  and 
interdependent  system  of  industries  and  commerce  has 
taken  the  place  of  the  old  individualistic  methods  of  pro- 
duction and  distribution.  In  place  of  the  early  systems 
of  barter  and  exchange  in  the  transfer  of  commodities, 
a  convenient  and  safe  system  of  money  has  been  devised, 
and  this  finally  supplemented  by  a  more  complex  sys- 
tem of  credit  currency.  But  further  illustrations  are 
unnecessary.  In  his  relations  with  his  fellows,  man  has 
met  problems  that  as  insistently  demand  solution  as  the 
problems  met  in  the  physical  realm.  And  these  problems 


THE  POWERS  OF  THE  INDIVIDUAL          189 

have  meant  thought,  experiment,  verification,  hypoth- 
eses, theories,  and  laws  in  the  social  realm  as  in  the  ma- 
terial. Thus  has  been  gathering  a  body  of  knowledge  of 
social  relations  to  guide  in  the  development  of  a  social 
technique. 

But  in  spite  of  this  marvellous  social  progress,  man  is 
yet  less  efficient  in  control  in  the  social  realm  than  in  the 

t-  •  physical.  The  social  sciences  are  less 

social  realm  thoroughly  developed  and  organized  than 
^e  mate"a^  sciences.  It  is  true  that  the 
world  of  social  environment  presents  greater 
difficulties  than  the  world  of  material  environment;  be- 
cause of  his  very  nature,  man  is  a  harder  subject  to  study 
and  understand  than  are  the  lower  forms  of  life.  But  this 
is  not  the  only  reason  for  the  relative  lack  of  control  in 
the  field  of  the  social  relations.  The  problems  of  material 
environment  have  pressed  harder  upon  man  than  the 
problems  of  the  social  environment,  and  hence  have  se- 
cured first  attention.  So  much  is  this  the  case  that  the 
term  "science  "  yet  means  to  many  people  only  knowledge 
of  material  things  and  their  laws. 

And  even  when  social  science  has  sufficiently  de- 
veloped to  serve  as  a  guide  for  technique,  social  tech- 
_..  .  nique  is  more  difficult  than  technique  hi 

Social  science         i        •     ,          .  ,.  •  . 

and  technique     the  industries;    for  social  control  has  to 


more  difficult      do  ^th  self  -active  persons  and  not  with 

than  physical.        .  £_  .     . 

inanimate  matter.  Hence  it  is  that,  with 
all  our  knowledge  of  political  institutions  and  our  experi- 
ence in  administering  governments,  the  machinery  of 
the  state  does  not  always  run  smoothly  and  efficiently. 
Our  laws  are  not  all  just,  and  those  that  are  just  are  not 
always  justly  enforced.  The  relations  of  labor  and  capital 
are  so  far  from  being  settled  that  the  question  constitutes 


190         SOCIAL  PRINCIPLES  OF  EDUCATION 

one  of  the  severest  strains  on  social  unity.  In  spite  of 
the  efforts  of  home,  school,  church,  and  state,  we  are 
unable  to  control  crime  either  at  its  origin  or  its  outcome. 
For  we  now  have  in  the  United  States  the  largest  pro- 
portion of  serious  crimes  of  any  civilized  nation,  and  this 
proportion  is  on  the  increase;  nor  are  we  much  more 
successful  in  restraining  and  reforming  the  criminal  when 
caught.  State  education  has  not  yet  eliminated  igno- 
rance and  inefficiency,  nor  the  church  unrighteousness. 
But  while  all  this  is  true,  it  does  not  indicate  man's  ina- 
bility to  control  in  the  social  as  well  as  in  the  material 
realm.  It  only  shows  the  nature  of  the  problems  still 
waiting  for  solution,  and  hence  indicates  the  points 
where  further  knowledge  and  improved  technique  are 
needed  before  full  control  can  be  exercised  in  the  social 
environment. 

Such,  in  brief  outline,  are  the  powers  and  capacities  of 
the  individual,  the  personal  capital  that  he  invests  in  the 
_  ,  .  .  co-operative  partnership  that  exists  be- 

Relationof  **  .    J 

education  to  tween  himself  and  society,  and  upon  which 
powers  of  the  he  must  realize  for  his  own  welfare  and  suc- 

individual.  . 

cess.  At  the  first  but  potential  capital, 
they  must  become  actual  through  an  experience  process 
that  we  call  development;  that  is,  education.  It  there- 
fore becomes  the  business  of  education  to  stimulate  and 
guide  the  experience  process  by  which  these  powers  are 
realized,  brought  under  control,  and  set  at  work  in 
social  activities.  The  manner  in  which  the  capacities 
and  powers  of  the  individual  develop  will  constitute  the 
subject  of  our  next  discussion. 


THE  POWERS  OF  THE  INDIVIDUAL          191 


REFERENCES 

Bagley,  Educational  Values;  Betts,  The  Mind  and  Its  Educa- 
tion, ch.  XVI;  Dewey,  Moral  Principles  of  Education;  Harris, 
Psychologic  Foundations  of  Education;  Helen  Keller,  The  World 
I  Live  In;  Shaler,  The  Individual;  Thorndike,  Principles  of 
Teaching,  chs.  III-VI,  also  Individuality.  Any  standard  psy- 
chologies. 


CHAPTER  IX 

THE  MODE  OF  INDIVIDUAL  DEVELOPMENT 

I.    The  General  Nature  of  Development 

Development  is  the  constant  miracle  and  mystery  of 
life.    To-day  a  babe,  the  most  helpless  of  animals;  to- 

morrow a  man,  with  powers  at  work  in  the 
development?11  wol"W's  activities.  And  only  development 

lies  between.  For  nothing  is  added;  the 
increase  of  the  child's  powers  is  not  by  a  process  of  accre- 
tion, but  rather  by  a  process  of  evolution.  Development 
is  but  the  unfoldment  of  the  innate  germs  of  powers 
possessed  by  the  individual. 

Development  is  conditioned  first  of  all  by  what  may 
be  called  the  original  nature  of  the  individual,  his  native 

powers   and    capacities   received    through 

heredity.     This  endowment  is  what  the 


individual          individual  has  to  build  upon,  and  nothing 

development.        ^hat  ^e  can  ^°  °r  tnat  Can  ^e  ^°ne  ^Or  n^m 

will  make  up  for  any  lack  or  shortage  in  this 
fundamental  equipment.  Nature  is  responsible  for  the 
type  and  amount  of  inheritance;  education  only  for 
its  development  and  use.  Education  must  assume  re- 
sponsibility for  powers  that  are  inherent  in  the  individual 
but  not  called  forth;  but  education  is  not  responsible 
for  the  calling  forth  of  powers  that  are  lacking,  or  present 
in  so  small  a  degree  as  not  to  repay  cultivation.  To  what 

192 


MODE  OF  INDIVIDUAL  DEVELOPMENT      193 

degree  individuals  differ  in  the  type  and  amount  of  the 
inheritance  of  powers  and  capacities  becomes  therefore 
one  of  the  insistent  problems  of  education. 

But  while  development  is  limited  by  the  hereditary 
equipment  of  the  individual,  it  is  conditioned  not  less 
Development  ky  tne  nature  of  the  stimuli  with  which 
dependent  also  the  individual  is  surrounded.  For  powers 

on  stimuli.  j  •.  •        j  •          e  ±t     • 

and  capacities  do  not  arise  of  their  own  ac- 
cord and  proceed  in  their  growth  without  being  called  forth 
by  some  external  necessity.  They  must  be  demanded 
by  environmental  conditions,  and  set  at  work  in  solving 
some  problem  which  constitutes  the  stimulus.  Thus  it 
follows  that  an  environment  rich  in  stimuli  suited  to  the 
powers  and  capacities  of  the  individual  is  calculated  to 
demand  a  wealth  of  response,  and  hence  secure  broad 
development.  For  all  development,  whether  of  mole- 
cules or  men,  is  the  product  of  these  two  factors,  stimulus 
and  response.  The  function  of  education  may  therefore 
be  denned  as  that  of  surrounding  the  individual  with  the 
type  and  variety  of  stimuli  that  will  call  forth  the  re- 
sponses leading  to  desired  development.  This  is  the 
fundamental  problem;  all  else  is  supplemental  to  it. 
Schools  and  equipment,  courses  of  instruction,  text- 
books, and  methods  of  instruction  are  all  means  to  this 
end.  Nothing  that  secures  the  response  of  desirable 
powers  falls  short  of  being  education,  and  whatever  fails 
at  this  point  is  not  education.  We  will,  then,  proceed  to 
a  somewhat  closer  examination  of  these  two  fundamental 
factors,  stimulus  and  response,  as  determining  the  de- 
velopment of  the  individual. 


194         SOCIAL  PRINCIPLES  OF  EDUCATION 


II.    Inherent  Attributes  of  the  Individual  Influencing 
Development 

The  question  of  response  rests  immediately  upon  the 
inherent  attributes  of  the  individual.  Indeed,  response 
individualistic  *s  ^e  most  fundamentally  individualistic 
nature  of  thing  there  is.  So  individualistic  is  it  that, 

except  in  the  very  lowest  forms  of  life,  the 
response  that  will  be  made  by  a  given  individual  to  a 
certain  stimulus  cannot  be  predicted  with  any  degree  of 
certainty.  If  a  hundred  individuals  of  the  same  species 
are  given  the  same  stimulus,  as  many  different  responses 
will  follow,  no  two  being  alike.  This  must  needs  be  the 
case,  since  response  depends  upon  the  type  of  impression 
made  and  upon  the  interpretation  of  this  impression; 
but  impression  and  interpretation  both  are  modified,  not 
only  by  the  original  nature  of  the  individual,  but  also  by 
his  past  experience.  And  so  far  are  individuals  of  the 
human  family  from  duplicating  each  other,  even  in  so 
elementary  a  thing  as  the  finger-prints  now  used  as  a 
means  of  registering  and  detecting  criminals,  that,  ac- 
cording to  recent  estimates,  forty  times  the  population 
of  the  globe  would  have  to  be  examined  before  there 
would  be  a  chance  of  two  individuals  being  found  pre- 
cisely alike  in  their  finger-prints.  The  individual  is 
therefore  the  ultimate  factor  on  the  response  side.  The 
environment  supplies  the  stimuli,  but  it  remains  with  the 
individual  to  determine  the  nature  of  the  response. 
Plasticity  Plasticity  is  the  first  requisite  of  develop- 

necessary  to  ment.  Plasticity  may  be  defined  as  the  ca- 
deveiopment.  pacjty  for  receiving  modifications  from  en- 
vironment and  retaining  these  modifications.  Only  the 


MODE  OF  INDIVIDUAL  DEVELOPMENT      195 

plastic  organism  can  change;  and  change  lies  at  the 
basis  of  all  development.  Further,  only  the  plastic  or- 
ganism can  retain  the  effects  produced  in  the  organism 
by  change;  and  none  but  permanent  effects  have  to 
do  with  progress. 

The  young  of  the  human  family  are  not  plastic  because 
of  their  youth,  but  they  require  the  long  period  of  youth 
Biological  because  they  must  have  plasticity.  The 

meaning  of         lower  forms  have  no  youth-time  to  be  spent 

in  helplessness  and  dependence.  The  but- 
terfly is  ready  to  try  his  wings  the  hour  of  his  birth.  The 
chick  bursts  from  the  shell,  and  almost  immediately  falls 
to  pecking,  eating,  and  scratching  very  much  like  its 
elders.  The  duck  knows  how  to  swim  when  it  is  born. 
Millions  of  the  lower  forms  of  animal  life  come  into  the 
world  full-grown,  each  born  an  adult,  able  to  go  imme- 
diately at  the  complete  round  of  his  life's  activities. 

But  not  so  with  human  kind.  The  child  comes  into 
the  world  more  helpless  than  the  new-born  beast,  and 

destitute  of  all  the  characteristics  which 
of^eTcWid!3  later  in  life  distinguish  him  from  the  lower 

animals.  And  not  only  must  man  begin 
lower  in  the  scale  than  the  young  of  lower  forms,  but  his 
rate  of  development  is  also  slower.  The  young  animal 
playmates  of  the  child  pass  him  in  growth,  and  have 
reached  their  maturity  while  the  child  is  yet  a  helpless 
dependent.  While  the  child  is  climbing  the  ladder  of 
development  slowly  and  painfully,  the  lower  forms  at 
once  leap  into  efficiency. 

Long  period  Why  should  it  take  so  long  a  time?    Our 

of  human  political  infancy  lasts   twenty-one   years; 

economic  infancy  from  fifteen  to  twenty 
years;  and  physical  and  mental  infancy  almost  a  quar- 


196         SOCIAL  PRINCIPLES  OF  EDUCATION 

ter  of  a  century.  At  first  thought  this  seems  like  a  great 
waste — a  third  or  a  half  of  the  life  gone  before  the  pow- 
ers are  at  their  best.  Has  nature  erred  or  been  less  kind 
to  the  human  young  than  to  the  lower  forms?  Is  there 
a  reason  why  man  needs  this  long  probationary  period 
of  youth  and  the  lower  animals  do  not?  The  answer  is 
not  far  to  seek.  The  animal  can  begin  its  activities  at 
once  because  they  are  few  and  simple.  Instincts  and 
impulses  inherited  from  the  past  are  its  guides  to  action. 
It  finds  its  environment  ready  made  and  does  not  seek 
to  change  it.  What  its  race  has  done  from  the  beginning, 
it  continues  to  do.  The  lower  forms  are  not  inventive. 
They  are  not  progressive.  Education  is  unnecessary, 
for  instinct  tells  each  individual  what  to  do;  it  is  im- 
possible, for  the  lower  animal  is  cut  short  on  the  period 
of  plasticity  called  youth. 

But  the  child  confronts  a  very  different  problem. 
Man  does  not  submit  to  his  environment,  but  learns  to 
Complex  control  it.  He  does  not  blindly  follow  in- 

environment       stinct  and  impulse  as  does  the  animal,  but 
u  '  modifies  his  instincts  by  experience  and 

reason.  Instead  of  a  simple  environment  and  few  ac- 
tivities, man  has  an  environment  of  amazing  complexity 
and  is  called  upon  to  perform  many  and  diverse  activities. 
The  culture  and  wisdom  gathered  by  the  race  through 
the  ages  the  child  of  to-day  is  called  upon  to  master  and 
make  a  part  of  his  own  experience.  The  attainment  of 
centuries  awaits  him.  All  the  systems  of  philosophy,  the 
triumphs  of  art,  the  beauties  of  literature,  the  discoveries 
of  science — all  that  man  has  thought,  and  felt,  and  done, 
is  offered  the  child  by  the  past  as  a  preparation  for  the 
future.  And  all  these  things  and  many  more  must  in 
some  degree  be  accomplished;  and  they  cannot  be  ac- 


MODE  OF  INDIVIDUAL  DEVELOPMENT      197 

complished  in  a  day.  There  must  be  a  season  of  life 
set  apart  for  preparation,  a  time  when  mind  and  organ- 
ism are  in  a  plastic,  receptive  condition  for  the  mastery 
of  the  matter  and  technique  of  living. 

And  it  is  at  this  point  that  nature  has  been  kind  instead 
of  cruel  to  man  in  giving  him  the  longer  period  of  youth. 
He  must  have  a  time  when  economic  press- 

ure  *s  not  fe^>  kut  wnen  tne  wants  are  pro- 
vided by  others;    a  time  when  state  and 
nation  can  impose  no  duties  of  citizenship  except  that  of 
going  to  school;  a  time  when  body  and  mind  are  not  ripe 
for  the  sterner  activities  of  life;  a  time  when  the  child  can- 
not be  so  profitably  employed  in  any  line  of  work  as  in  get- 
ting ready  for  future  work — that  is,  in  being  educated. 
Here,  then,  we  find  the  answer  to  our  question.    The 
child  must  have  a  long  period  of  plasticity  because  he 
must   establish    an   almost   inconceivably 
necessitates        complex  system  of  responses.     He  must 
education,  and    garner  a  large  set  of  useful  reactions  as 
possible!  habits;  he  must  gather  a  great  body  of  in- 

formation and  learn  to  use  it  in  adjusting 
himself  to  the  social  process;  he  must  develop  motives, 
establish  standards  of  values,  and  learn  the  technique 
of  control  of  self  and  environment.  He  must  construct 
and  reconstruct  a  system  of  personal  experience  that  shall 
function  as  a  guide  in  the  control  of  his  experience-process 
— he  must  be  educated.  And  no  animal  that  lacks  the 
period  of  youth  can  be  educated,  for  it  lacks  plasticity 
of  nervous  system.  On  the  other  hand,  an  animal  that 
has  the  period  of  youth  can  and  must  be  educated;  can 
be  educated,  because  of  the  plasticity  of  its  nervous  sys- 
tem, and  must  be  educated  in  order  to  compete  with  and 
serve  others  of  its  species  which  are  educated. 


198         SOCIAL  PRINCIPLES  OF  EDUCATION 

A  period  of  helplessness  on  the  part  of  the  young  im- 
plies helpfulness  on  the  part  of  the  grown.  The  ignorance 
of  youth  implies  the  wisdom  of  age.  In- 
experience  on  the  part  of  the  child  implies 
experience  and  guidance  on  the  part  of 
adults.  And  the  youth-time  of  the  child  is  a  time  full  of 
strange  paradoxes.  It  is  the  least  burdened  and  most 
care-free  period  of  life;  yet  every  child  is  impatient  to 
have  done  with  it  and  get  at  the  more  serious  business  of 
life.  Youth  is  seemingly  a  waste  time  through  which  all 
must  pass  in  order  to  reach  the  estate  when  things  can 
be  done  that  are  worth  while;  yet  a  year  lost  out  of  the 
life  at  the  age  of  five  would  cripple  its  ultimate  achieve- 
ment far  more  than  a  year  lost  out  at  twenty-five  or  fifty. 
In  youth  the  mind  and  brain  are  unripe  and  undeveloped; 
yet  many  things  are  learned  faster  and  better  then  than 
at  any  other  age.  Youth  is  impulsive  and  lacks  experi- 
ence, yet  the  most  important  and  far-reaching  decisions 
of  life  must  be  made  in  youth;  for  it  is  in  youth  that 
habits  are  formed,  moral  and  religious  standards  are  set 
up,  education  determined,  vocation  selected,  and  a  mate 
chosen.  A  false  step  taken  in  youth  is  far  more  fatal  than 
one  taken  at  any  other  time;  yet  youth's  pathway  is 
most  thickly  strewn  with  perils  and  pitfalls.  These  con- 
ditions are  inevitable,  since  they  belong  to  plasticity. 
They  give  society  its  responsibility,  and  also  its  oppor- 
tunity in  guiding  the  development  of  the  child. 

Development  is  always  the  result  of  forces  working 
from  within  and  never  from  without.  A  mine  may  be 
"Self -activity"  developed,  but  it  never  can  develop,  for 
the  process  of  it  is  not  self-active.  A  plant  or  a  child  can 
development.  devdOp,  for  it  has  an  organizing,  recon- 
structing force  inherent  in  its  inner  nature.  Every  being 


MODE  OF  INDIVIDUAL  DEVELOPMENT      199 

capable  of  development  carries  the  law  of  its  own  de- 
velopment within  itself,  and  its  development,  normally 
evolved,  is  but  an  expression  of  this  inner  law.  That  the 
individual  may  develop  in  one  way  under  certain  condi- 
tions of  environment,  and  in  quite  a  different  way  under 
other  conditions  of  environment,  does  not  alter  the  fact. 
The  original  nature  of  the  individual  ultimately  contains 
the  germ  of  all  development,  and  the  environment  only 
gives  now  one  set  of  activities  their  adequate  stimulus, 
and  now  another. 

The  controlling  influence  in  development  exerted  by 

original  nature  may  be  seen  from  such  a  simple  fact  as 

that  from  the  one  setting  of  eggs  placed  to 

development       hatch  under  a  hen,  one  egg  might  produce 

inherent  in         an  eagle,  another  a  dove,  another  a  goose, 

individual.  .  • 

and  so  on.  Nor  can  these  diverse  indi- 
viduals be  made  to  become  alike  by  placing  them  all  in 
the  same  coop  after  they  have  left  their  shells,  and  feeding 
and  mothering  them  in  the  same  way.  The  eagle  may 
never  become  a  perfect  eagle  nor  the  dove  a  perfect 
dove  under  treatment  that  will  produce  a  perfect  goose; 
but  the  eagle  will  remain  an  eagle  and  the  dove  a  dove, 
and  neither  will  tend  to  become  a  goose.  Each  must 
develop  in  accordance  with  the  principle  inherent  in  its 
own  organism. 

The  most  fundamental  and  universal  attribute  of  this 
inner  principle  or  force  is  that  it  eventuates  in  activity. 
Activity  is  a  sine  qua  non  of  development, 
ment  except        Nothing  static  progresses,  much  less  de- 
velops.   There  is  no  mysterious  something 
inherent  in  life  which  of  itself  produces 
growth  and  development,  and  which  incidentally  hap- 
pens to  be  accompanied  by  certain  manifestations  of  ac- 


200         SOCIAL  PRINCIPLES  OF  EDUCATION 

tivity.  Activity  is  itself  the  controlling  element  in  devel- 
opment, the  only  means  by  which  it  can  take  place.  If 
it  were  possible  to  take  a  child  on  the  day  of  its  birth 
and  give  it  a  normal  environment,  but  by  some  magic 
eliminate  all  the  results  of  activity  as  fast  as  they  ac- 
crued, the  child  might  go  on  living  for  a  year,  ten  years, 
a  lifetime,  and  no  development  would  have  taken  place, 
either  physical  or  mental. 

Now  since  development  grows  out  of  an  inner  force  so 
identified  with  the  self  that  its  nature  serves  to  define 
This  activity  the  verv  centre  and  core  of  the  nature  of  the 
must  be  individual,  it  follows  that  the  process  of 

iif-activity.  development  may  be  defined  as  self-activ- 
ity. For  it  is  the  self  that  develops;  it  develops  only 
through  activity,  and  this  activity  must  be  an  activity 
of  the  self.  Stated  differently,  the  potential  in  the  indi- 
vidual is  made  actual  only  through  self-expression; 
powers  are  realized  only  through  their  use;  the  self  rises 
out  of  its  own  acts. 

Avoiding  the  metaphysical  discussions  as  to  the  ulti- 
mate nature  of  the  self,  we  may  agree  that  the  aspects 
Concreteness  °^  ^  wnicn  we  are  discussing  constitute  no 
of  the  active  vague,  unknowable  entity,  but  it  is  con- 
crete and  empirical.  It  consists  of  a  com- 
posite unity  including  a  physical  self,  a  mental  self, 
and  a  social  self,  each  of  which  is  known  and  defined 
through  its  activities.  Any  activity,  therefore,  that  in- 
volves the  whole  self  will  include  each  of  these  three 
aspects.  If,  for  example,  the  child  is  to  express  the 
whole  self  in  his  play,  the  play  must  involve  physical, 
mental,  and  social  activities.  The  physical  activities 
must  be  spontaneous  and  free  from  restraint;  his  in- 
terest, imagination,  perception,  and  invention  must  be 


MODE  OF  INDIVIDUAL  DEVELOPMENT      201 

constantly  employed,  and  all  this  must  be  accompanied 
by  the  stimulus  of  social  companionship. 

It  is  very  probable  that  the  whole  self,  or  even  a  large 
proportion  of  it,  is  seldom  involved  in  our  activities. 
The  difference  is  plainly  seen  in  the  slow, 
self  demanded,  half -hearted,  and  forced  movements  of  the 
boy  hoeing  the  hated  rows  of  corn,  and  the 
movements  of  the  same  boy  bounding  toward  the  base- 
ball field  or  the  swimming-hole.  The  same  difference  is 
seen  in  a  discouraged  or  uninterested  student's  forced, 
listless,  and  ineffective  efforts  at  studying  a  lesson,  and 
this  pupil's  avid  attack  on  an  interesting  story  or  a  fas- 
cinating game.  In  the  one  case  the  self  was  in  abeyance, 
and  some  form  of  external  necessity  prompted  the  ac- 
tivity; in  the  other  case  the  whole  self  was  present  and 
demanding  the  activity. 

No  doubt  the  indifferent  boy  should  learn  to  hoe  his 
corn,  and  do  it  well.  This  may  be  worth  while  even  if 
he  must  be  compelled  by  external  force  to 
perform  his  work.  But  before  he  will  be  a 
successful  hoer  of  corn,  and,  more  important 
still,  before  through  hoeing  corn  he  receives  the  training 
and  development  it  has  for  him,  he  must  come  to  exert 
the  compulsion  himself.  The  activity  must  come  to  be 
a  se//-activity.  Similarly,  the  student  must  learn  to 
master  his  lesson,  even  if  external  necessity  is  required. 
But  before  the  student  secures  the  full  measure  of 
development  from  the  lesson,  his  efforts  must  be  mo- 
tived from  within  the  self.  The  self  must  be  brought 
ultimately  to  affirm  and  support  the  compulsion  ex- 
erted by  external  forces,  and  to  take  their  place  in 
bringing  the  powers  into  activity.  Only  in  this  way 
will  activity  have  its  full  result  hi  development  and  the 


202         SOCIAL  PRINCIPLES  OF  EDUCATION 

self  come  to  secure  control  over  the  processes  of  its  own 
experience. 

Nor  does  this  mean  that  the  activities  of  the  self  are 
to  be  compelled  against  the  current  of  personal  inclina- 
The  self  must  ^ion  an<^  desires  all  the  time  nor  perhaps 
give  itself  fully  much  of  the  time.  For,  while  it  is  often 
necessary  that  this  be  done,  yet  the  full 
powers  of  the  self  cannot  be  brought  into  effect  in  this 
way.  When  activity  is  at  its  best,  whether  physical  or 
mental,  it  has  back  of  it  all  the  individual's  powers  and 
resources.  The  whole  being  urgently  calls  out  for  and 
demands  this  activity.  The  self  wills  it  fully  and  com- 
pletely; interest  and  desire  prompt  it;  the  entire  organ- 
ism affirms  it  and  gives  itself  gladly  to  it;  no  part  of  the 
self  is  latent  or  withheld.  If  it  is  some  problem  of  manual 
skill,  not  only  the  cunning  of  the  hand,  but  all  the  best 
of  the  mind's  enthusiasm,  its  invention,  its  discrimination, 
and  whatever  other  powers  can  lend  themselves  to  the 
work  in  hand,  are  marshalled  to  the  accomplishment  of 
the  task.  If  it  is  a  matter  for  the  mind  to  grapple  and 
master,  not  just  the  memory,  the  simplest  processes  of 
association  and  the  most  elementary  forms  of  discrim- 
ination are  employed,  but  all  the  powers  of  the  mind 
are  called  forth,  and  the  subject  is  conceived  in  all  its 
relations  and  fully  assimilated  to  the  mental  possessions. 
And  this  makes  all  the  difference  between  superficial 
learning  and  complete  learning. 

The  most  powerful  factor  in  compelling  the  entire  self 
to  participate  in  its  activities  is  interest  and  emotion, 
interest  and  ^n  *ts  dynamic  side  interest  is  one  of  the 
emotion  the  most  impulsive  aspects  of  the  mind.  What 
re8'  it  attaches  itself  to  becomes  at  once  an 
object  of  response;  the  entire  mind  and  organism  reaches 


MODE  OF  INDIVIDUAL  DEVELOPMENT      203 

out  for  it  and  desires  to  function  with  reference  to  it — 
to  see  it,  handle  it,  have  to  do  with  it,  or  in  some  way 
incorporate  it  as  a  part  of  experience.  Interest  is  the 
great  motive  force,  leading  to  action  and  achievement. 
Under  its  promptings,  powers  of  the  self  that  can  be 
commanded  in  no  other  way  come  forward  and  function 
in  experience,  and  the  foundation  is  thereby  laid  for  the 
exercise  of  compulsion  through  effort  and  the  exercise 
of  the  will.  Lacking  interest,  the  powers  of  the  self  lag 
and  will  not  be  fully  compelled  by  any  of  the  ordinary 
necessities  of  external  control.  The  foundation  for  self- 
compulsion  is  absent  and  the  will  cannot  bring  its  effort 
to  bear. 

The  general  emotional  attitude  is  hardly  less  important 
than  interest  in  its  bearing  on  the  power  to  bring  all  the 
Pleasure  and  se^  mto  action.  Roughly  classified,  the 
pain  as  pleasant-feeling  states  prompt  to  full  and 

effective  response,  while,  on  the  other  hand, 
unpleasant-feeling  states  cripple  action  and  lower  effi- 
ciency. The  bright,  cheerful,  happy  mood  tends  to 
bring  every  power  to  its  best,  while  the  mood  of  dull 
and  heavy  character  reduces  power  of  action  and  ac- 
complishment. A  feeling  of  doubt  and  discouragement 
presages  failure,  and  a  feeling  of  mastery  and  assurance 
goes  far  to  insure  success. 

The  activities  of  the  self  are  not  only  powerfully 
affected  by  the  characteristic  feeling  responses  of  interest 
Social  and  emotion,  but  also  by  social  incentives, 

incentives  The  influence  of  the  social  motives  in  exert- 
ing pressure  on  the  powers  of  the  individual 
has  already  been  shown.  The  compelling  force  of  public 
opinion  is  powerful,  both  in  its  restraining  and  in  its 
stimulating  effects.  In  industrial  and  commercial  ethics 


204         SOCIAL  PRINCIPLES  OF  EDUCATION 

it  has  often  proved  more  effective  than  statute  law;  it 
is  one  of  the  greatest  safeguards  in  politics;  it  often 
accomplishes  in  the  administration  of  a  school  what  rules 
and  authority  could  not  effect.  Worthy  traditions  and 
high  standards  of  scholarship  render  accomplishment  easy 
on  the  part  of  the  student,  while  their  lack  deprives  him 
of  a  powerful  incentive.  The  spirit  of  emulation  aroused 
by  the  co-operation  and  competition  of  those  in  similar 
activities  is  a  constant  appeal  to  the  powers  of  the  self. 
The  old  lust  for  contest  and  the  desire  for  mastery  and 
control  are  revealed  in  their  best  and  highest  form  in  this 
set  of  motives.  There  is  little  danger  in  the  use  of  social 
emulation  in  education,  providing  that  it  is  balanced  with 
social  motives  of  altruistic  nature,  causing  the  individual 
to  desire  to  measure  himself  by  his  companion  when  he 
is  at  his  best  and  not  under  some  handicap.  In  other 
words,  emulation  needs  to  be  accompanied  by  the  spirit 
of  true  sportsmanship. 

Finally,  a  knowledge  of  the  objective  value  of  the  ac- 
tivity has  an  important  bearing  on  the  amount  of  the  self 

Knowledge  of        tnat  Soes  mto  it;-      Tn^S  *S>   °f  COUrSC,   not 

the  value  of  true  of  the  play  activities,  which  are  an 
ctivity.  encj  m  themselves  and  do  not  depend  for 
their  value  on  any  objective  utility.  But  in  the  more 
serious  activities  the  end  sought  is  an  important  aspect 
of  the  question.  Other  things  being  equal,  the  activities 
that  are  most  closely  related  to  personal  experience, 
immediate  or  remote,  are  the  ones  that  most  appeal  to 
the  individual.  Experience  is  an  unbroken  unity  which 
permits  of  no  gaps  or  breaks.  The  activities  of  the 
school  must  grow  naturally  out  of  those  of  the  home  and 
the  community  if  they  are  to  appeal.  The  work  of  the 
student  must  relate  itself  to  what  he  is  doing  and  think- 


MODE  OF  INDIVIDUAL  DEVELOPMENT      205 

ing  in  the  run  of  his  daily  experience;  leading  this  ex- 
perience to  a  broader  and  higher  outlook,  it  is  true,  but 
vitally  articulating  with  it  in  order  to  do  this.  Failure 
to  connect  the  activities  of  the  school  with  the  interests 
and  activities  of  life  outside  the  school  is  probably  one 
of  the  sources  of  greatest  weakness  in  our  system  of  edu- 
cation. This  failure  is  not  only  responsible  for  much 
mediocre  achievement  in  personal  development  on  the 
part  of  the  pupils,  not  all  of  whose  powers  are  called  into 
requisition,  but  it  is  also  responsible  for  much  of  the 
elimination  of  pupils  from  school  before  completing  the 
curriculum. 

Society  has  been  slow  in  providing  for  the  expression 
side  of  education.  In  fact,  in  the  earlier  concepts  of  edu- 
piaceofex-  cation  expression  had  little  or  no  part, 
pression  in  Only  the  necessity  for  impressions  was  con- 
development.  sidered  The  mind  was  to  be  "impressed" 
with  facts;  knowledge  was  to  be  "stored  in  the  mind," 
or  was  to  be  "imparted"  to  the  pupil;  education  was 
somewhat  synonymous  with  information.  Later,  this 
concept  was  broadened  to  include  the  interpretation  of 
the  facts  learned.  Not  just  the  memory,  but  also  the 
reason,  was  to  be  trained;  what  was  learned  was  to  be 
understood.  A  certain  amount  of  information  reasonably 
well  understood  constituted  an  education.  It  has  re- 
mained for  comparatively  recent  times  to  comprehend  in 
its  educational  significance  the  fact  that  no  impression  has 
fulfilled  its  function  until  it  has  eventuated  in  expression. 
And  it  is  doubtful  whether  even  yet  we  fully  understand 
the  double  relationship  of  expression  in  individual  devel- 
opment: first,  as  the  means  by  which  development  is 
accomplished,  and  second,  as  the  means  by  which  it  is 
made  effective  in  the  reconstruction  of  experience. 


206         SOCIAL  PRINCIPLES  OF  EDUCATION 

A  reason  has  also  existed  on  the  practical  side  for  the 

lack  of  emphasis  on  the  expression  phase  of  education  in 

the  schools.    It  is  easier  and  costs  far  less 

reason  for          to  equip  for  the  impression  side  of  educa- 


the  neglect         ^on  fa^  for  ^e  expression  side.    All  that 

of  expression.       .  .  r  .  , 

is  needed  in  the  former  case  is  a  teacher 
and  text-books  reasonably  full  of  information;  but  in 
the  latter  case  much  equipment  is  required  in  the  way 
of  laboratories  and  material,  workshops,  gymnasiums, 
and  playgrounds.  And  all  these  cost  money. 

Instincts  and  impulses  are  the  motives  to  activity. 
Each  individual  when  born  is  the  heir  of  all  the  genera- 

tions that  have  preceded  him.  Through 
instincts  and  countless  ages  the  cycles  of  life  have  been 
impulses  in  coming  and  going.  Each  generation  has 

development.  '  .       ,.     f  ...  .     , 

performed  its  M  e  s  activities,  tried  out  its 
various  experiments,  and  been  subject  to  the  tests  of 
environment  —  and  thereby  learned  its  lesson.  That  the 
individuals  were  not  conscious  of  the  import  of  the  lesson 
learned,  or  even  that  a  lesson  had  been  learned,  does  not 
matter.  Nor  does  it  matter  to  us  in  this  connection  just 
how  the  lesson  was  acquired  and  transmitted.  But 
somehow  there  has  come  to  be  ingrained  in  the  structure 
of  the  organism,  and  in  the  consciousness  of  the  race,  the 
lessons  from  this  experience  of  the  ages.  In  this  way  the 
race  has  gathered  up  something  of  the  power  and  tech- 
nique of  living;  it  has  learned  how  to  do  some  things 
that  were  found  best  to  do,  and  how  to  refrain  from 
doing  other  things  that  were  found  best  not  to  do. 

Preorganized  ^  *s  true  tnat>  Just  as  manv  °f  these  les- 

neurai  sons  did  not  enter  into  the  consciousness  of 

tendencies.         those  learning  them,  so  they  are  not  trans- 
mitted to  the  consciousness  of  the  individual  receiving 


MODE  OF  INDIVIDUAL  DEVELOPMENT      207 

them.  But  they  are  all  the  more  universal  and  useful 
because  they  do  not  require  consciousness  for  their  re- 
ception or  operation.  They  come  to  each  individual  as 
a  set  of  preorganized  tendencies  to  response  carried 
in  the  nervous  system.  A  million  generations  acting  in 
a  given  way  have  left  this  particular  way  as  their  gift 
to  their  progeny.  And  thus  has  efficiency  been  accumu- 
lating. In  this  way  the  race  has  been  standardizing  its 
activities,  making  fruitful  acts  a  part  of  racial  her- 
itage and  allowing  unfruitful  acts  to  drop  out  through 
the  process  of  natural  selection.  Thus  the  racial  habits, 
the  lines  of  action  that  have  been  found  on  the  whole  to 
favor  successful  living,  are  transmitted  to  each  new  gen- 
eration as  impulses  and  instincts. 

In  this  way  each  individual  is  enabled  to  start  in  with 
his  activities  where  the  race  left  off  in  its  progress.  He 
T  ^  x  does  not  have  to  wait  to  experiment  for 

Instinct  a  i        ,  .      r 

means  of  the  best  way  to  take  his  food,  move  his 

economy  in        body,  or  do  a  thousand  other  acts  that  are 

development  J ' 

necessary  for  his  existence  and  develop- 
ment. To  be  sure,  these  instinctive  tendencies  do  not 
cover  all  the  details  of  living  if  the  individual  belongs 
to  the  higher  cycles  of  life.  They  deal  rather  with  the 
great  fundamental  lines  of  action,  and  leave  the  highly 
specialized  activities  to  be  worked  out  in  the  course  of 
individual  experience.  These  impulses  to  action  are  so 
timed  in  their  ripening  that  each  one  appears  at  the  time 
when  the  organism  needs  the  activity  which  the  instinct 
prompts,  and  when  the  activity  is  no  longer  required 
the  impulse  drops  out  and  the  activity  disappears. 

Thus  the  individual  is  supplied  by  the  race  with  great 
starting-points  for  development;  that  is,  with  tendencies 
to  lines  of  action  vital  to  the  full  realization  of  the  self.  If 


208         SOCIAL  PRINCIPLES  OF  EDUCATION 

these  starting-points  are  taken  advantage  of  when  at  their 

height  as  impulses,  they  render  development  easy  and 

effective:    if  they  are  let  go  by.  they  soon 

Instincts  are          ,    ,  '  '         ,  .  V   .       « 

starting-points     fade  out  from  want  of  use,  and  their  advan- 
for  develop-        tage  js  iost  to  ^g  individual  in  his  educa- 

ment.  .  °  . 

tion.  It  is  safe  to  say  that  there  is  no  great 
line  of  development  that  does  not  have  lying  back  of  it 
a  set  of  impulses  leading  to  achievement  if  they  are  given 
opportunity  for  expression. 

The  child's  instinct  of  curiosity  makes  him  eager  to 
know;  his  impulse  to  activity  makes  it  easy  for  him  to 
instincts  have  an  interest  hi  doing.  The  art  impulse 

functioning         opens  the  way  to  aesthetic  development  and 

in  education.  •    •          •       ^i  i     •  e  • 

training  in  the  technique  of  expression. 
The  dramatic  impulse  insures  a  love  for  stories  and  leads 
to  efficiency  in  expression.  The  constructive  impulse 
leads  out  to  training  in  the  manual  industries  and  to 
the  cultivation  of  skill.  The  impulse  for  adventure  and 
daring  prepares  the  way  for  the  reading  of  history  and 
literature.  The  rise  of  the  social  impulse  prompts  to 
co-operation  in  work  and  play  and  forms  the  basis  for 
altruism.  The  problem  for  education  is  to  seize  upon 
these  impulses  and  utilize  them  as  sources  of  great 
lines  of  activity,  and  hence  of  development.  Indeed, 
education  may  be  looked  upon  from  one  standpoint 
as  but  a  process  of  modifying  through  reason  and  ex- 
perience the  responses  set  up  in  the  individual  by  in- 
stinctive tendencies. 

A  best  time  To  be  at  its  best  as  a  motive  for  activity, 

for  utilizing        the  impulse  must  be  seized  upon  neither  too 

early  nor  too  late.  There  is  a  time  when 
each  of  the  great  impulses  is  at  its  best  as  a  force  back 
of  the  growth  of  experience.  The  language  impulse  and 


MODE  OF  INDIVIDUAL  DEVELOPMENT      209 

the  impulse  to  imitation  have  their  rise  early  and  at  the 
same  time.  Here,  then,  is  the  great  basis  for  language 
learning  and  also  a  suggestion  of  the  method  to  be  em- 
ployed. When  the  impulse  to  physical  activity  and 
self-expression  through  construction  has  arisen,  then  is 
the  time  for  training  in  the  arts  and  handicrafts.  And  so 
we  might  go  on  through  the  list  of  impulses;  not  only 
should  we  find  them  correlating  with  lines  of  develop- 
ment, but  also  with  the  educational  material  upon  which 
development  rests.  It  therefore  becomes  one  of  the  im- 
portant problems  in  education  to  understand  the  funda- 
mental impulses  of  the  individual  and  to  effect  the  corre- 
lation of  these  educational  agencies  in  a  practical  way. 
Imitation,  suggestion,  and  language  determine  the 
course  of  development.  We  have  already  seen  that  cer- 
Deveiopment  ta^n  fundamental  impulses  of  the  child  are 
directed  by  the  contribution  of  former  generations  to 
suction,  k*s  Present  welfare.  Through  the  agency 
and  lan-  of  a  preorganized  nervous  system  arranged 

to  respond  in  definite  ways  to  adequate 
stimuli,  the  most  necessary  reactions  connected  with 
physical  existence  are  assured.  The  tendency  to  take 
food,  to  move,  to  escape  danger,  is  independent  of  in- 
struction, and  depends  upon  present  environment  only 
for  its  stimuli.  No  intelligence  is  required  for  the  initial 
operation  of  these  acts,  and  no  training  is  necessary  to 
enable  them  to  fulfil  their  primary  function. 
_  .  .  But  nature  does  not  provide  a  preorgan- 

Imitation 

insures  ized  set  of  reactions  large  enough  to  cover 

appropriate         aj}  the  responses  required  of  an  individual 

response.  .     r  r -,-r 

of  the  higher  order  of  Me.  In  order  to  meet 
a  wide  range  of  environment,  the  reactions  must  be 
great  in  number  and  highly  specialized.  Instinct  in- 


210         SOCIAL  PRINCIPLES  OF  EDUCATION 

sures  that  the  child  will  develop  an  articulate  speech,  but 
does  not  settle  the  question  whether  he  shall  speak  Ger- 
man, English,  or  Chinese.  It  provides  for  the  tendency 
to  eat  when  hungry,  but  does  not  specify  whether  it  shall 
be  with  his  fingers,  forks  and  spoons,  or  chopsticks.  It 
makes  certain  that  he  will  be  social  in  his  nature  and  de- 
sire to  mingle  with  others,  but  does  not  dictate  whether 
he  shalj  employ  the  social  conventions  of  the  clown  or 
the  courtesan.  The  race  did  not  find  the  particular  mode 
in  which  these  things  are  done  of  sufficient  importance 
to  crystallize  them  in  instincts,  hence  they  must  be 
learned  as  needed.  The  fundamental  impulses,  therefore, 
only  provide  for  the  universal  and  biologically  neces- 
sary responses,  and  leave  the  special  modifications  of 
these  to  be  settled  by  each  individual  with  reference  to 
the  demands  of  his  environment. 

The  simplest  method  of  adapting  the  highly  specialized 
forms  of  response  to  their  social  requirements  is  mani- 
festly for  each  new  generation  to  adopt  the  ways  of  doing 
things  which  are  followed  by  their  social  group.  This 
is  accomplished  through  imitation,  or  the  tendency  to 
respond  to  suggestions  from  others  by  repeating  their 
acts.  The  instinct  of  imitation  has  its  rise  in  the  child 
at  an  early  age,  probably  being  at  its  height  before  the 
age  of  five,  and  slowly  decreasing  through  adolescence, 
but  never  entirely  losing  its  force. 

The  increase  of  ultimate  efficiency  effected  in  the  in- 
dividual through  imitation,  and  the  saving  in  time  and 
energy,  both  on  the  part  of  children  and 

Economy  and  ** ' 

efficiency  adults,  are  beyond  computation.    Long  be- 

— ^  f°re  the  child  could  be  successfully  in- 

imitabon.  ,  .   J      . 

structed,  and  before  he  can  conceive  the 
necessity  of  learning  the  social  technique  of  his  group, 


MODE  OF  INDIVIDUAL  DEVELOPMENT      211 

he  has  begun  to  incorporate  their  methods  in  his  reactions 
and  make  them  an  integral  part  of  his  experience.  Start- 
ing with  no  fund  of  knowledge,  and  with  no  practice 
in  learning,  he  has  at  the  end  of  a  few  years  secured  a 
ready  and  accurate  command  of  a  difficult  language, 
having  greater  facility  in  its  use  than  he  will  find  possible 
to  develop  in  any  other  language  studied  later  in  life. 
Through  imitation  he  has  become  proficient  in  the  social 
manners  and  customs  of  his  group  long  before  he  realizes 
the  value  of  his  acquisition.  In  this  way  he  comes  into 
possession  of  the  forms  of  play  and  work  and  secures 
his  introduction  into  vocational  activities.  Through  imi- 
tation he  adopts  the  moral  and  religious  standards  of  his 
social  group  and  fits  himself  into  its  institutional  prac- 
tices. The  consequence  is,  that  during  the  years  of  bodily 
and  mental  unripeness  constituting  the  time  when  the 
individual  is  incapable  of  economic  contribution  to  so- 
ciety, and  while  he  still  requires  the  care  and  nurture  of 
the  home,  he  has,  without  effort  to  himself  and  without 
expense  or  trouble  to  society,  secured  the  most  funda- 
mental and  valuable  part  of  his  education. 

It  is  true  that  the  capacity  for  imitation  has  also  its 
dangers.  For  the  individual  will  imitate  an  imperfect 
Dangers  model  as  readily  as  a  perfect  one.  Imita- 

inherentin  tion  is  uncritical.  Nature  says  to  the 
child,  Imitate,  and  he  has  no  choice  but  to 
obey.  Coarse  and  vulgar  language,  boorish  and  uncouth 
social  conduct,  slovenly  methods  of  work  and  play,  and 
faulty  standards  of  morals  and  religion  are  as  readily 
incorporated  into  the  experience  of  the  child  as  those 
of  opposite  character. 

When  it  is  also  considered  that  the  period  of  freest 
imitation  is  likewise  the  time  of  the  formation  of  personal 


212         SOCIAL  PRINCIPLES  OF  EDUCATION 

habits,  the  responsibility  of  setting  the  models  for  the 
child  to  imitate  becomes  still  greater.  The  young  child 
Necessity  *s  m  large  degree  helpless  between  two  great 

for  good  controlling  forces,  the  impulse  to  imitate 

on  the  one  hand,  and  the  social  models  pre- 
sented him  on  the  other.  Nature  commands  that  the 
individual  imitate  the  acts  he  sees  going  on  about  him; 
society  sets  the  pattern;  habit  crystallizes  the  acts  into 
conduct,  and  character  is  formed  almost  before  the  indi- 
vidual is  conscious  of  what  is  happening. 

The  child's  impulse  to  imitate  affords  one  of  the  great- 
est educational  opportunities.  For  what  the  child  can 
imitation  to  learn  through  imitation  he  learns  much 
be  utilized  faster,  more  thoroughly,  and  can  use  with 
tion*  more  facility  than  what  he  learns  through 
formal  instruction.  As  a  matter  of  economy,  therefore, 
both  to  the  child  and  to  those  who  provide  his  instruc- 
tion, imitation  should  be  taken  full  advantage  of  as  an 
educational  agent.  The  subjects  of  the  curriculum  that 
are  most  easily  learned  through  imitation  should  be  pre- 
sented during  the  imitative  age,  and  should  be  so  presented 
that  imitation  rather  than  formal  analysis  shall  char- 
acterize the  method  employed.  Thus  language  should 
occupy  an  early  position  in  the  course,  but  should  be 
taught  from  the  standpoint  of  the  free  use  of  speech 
guided  and  stimulated  by  the  best  models  of  both  oral 
and  written  language  rather  than  from  the  standpoint 
of  grammar.  The  same  principles  will  apply  both  to  the 
learning  of  the  mother-tongue  and  all  spoken  foreign 
languages.  An  incalculable  amount  of  tune  is  at  present 
wasted  by  approaching  the  study  of  languages  from  the 
standpoint  of  grammatical  analysis  instead  of  from  the 
standpoint  of  imitation.  A  similar  source  of  waste  comes 


MODE  OF  INDIVIDUAL  DEVELOPMENT      213 

from  introducing  subjects  that  are  necessarily  formal  and 
analytical,  such  as  arithmetic,  into  the  course  too  early, 
while  the  powers  of  imitation  are  still  predominating  over 
those  of  analysis. 

Imitation  naturally  widens  out  and  shades  off  into  sug- 
gestion. In  imitation  the  response  copies  the  overt  act 
of  another  individual,  this  act  serving  as 
its  stimulus.  In  the  case  of  suggestion,  the 
stimulus  may  be  either  an  act,  an  object, 
or  a  symbol,  which  tends  to  produce  a  response.  The 
child  watches  an  older  person  swinging  a  hammock,  and, 
copying  this  act,  himself  swings  the  hammock;  here  he 
imitates  as  exactly  as  he  can  the  model  set  before  him. 
But  also,  acting  on  this  stimulus  as  a  suggestion  instead 
of  a  model,  the  child  may  tie  the  ends  of  a  rope  to  two 
chairs  and  swing  the  rope  for  a  hammock;  suggestion 
instead  of  imitation  now  controls  the  response.  Or  the 
child  sees  some  one  take  a  book  and  begin  to  read.  But 
the  book  itself  soon  becomes  a  sufficient  stimulus  to  set 
off  the  reaction,  and  the  child  gets  the  book  and  goes 
through  the  motions  of  reading  without  waiting  for  the 
act  of  the  older  person  to  serve  as  an  immediate  model; 
he  can  now  act  from  suggestion  as  well  as  by  imitation. 

The  ability  to  act  through  suggestion  vastly  increases 
the  stimuli  adequate  to  produce  response.  And  this  per- 
mits a  wider  range  of  responses,  and  hence 
more  rapid  development.  If  the  child  were 
stimuli  to  be  wholly  dependent  on  direct  imitation, 

the'cMid  tC  ^s  physical  environment  could  never  afford 
a  very  wide  range  of  stimuli,  since  it  would 
always  be  necessary  to  have  some  adult  at  hand  first  to 
respond  to  these  natural  stimuli  in  order  that  the  child 
might  have  a  model  for  his  own  response.  But  the  power 


214         SOCIAL  PRINCIPLES  OF  EDUCATION 

to  act  through  suggestion  places  at  the  disposal  of  the 
child  an  environment  rich  in  stimuli  of  widely  varied 
types,  and  also  allows  him  to  develop  an  individuality  of 
his  own  in  his  responses.  It  permits  him  to  follow  out 
the  inner  law  governing  his  own  development  in  a  way 
that  would  be  impossible  acting  under  imitation  alone. 

To  be  sure,  the  child,  even  in  imitation,  acts  in  an 

individualistic  way.    The  imitative  act  is  never  precisely 

a  copy  of  the  model.    Yet  the  play  of  ini- 

Suggesfaon  ^J  ^  J 

allows  larger  tiative  and  invention  is  here  at  a  minimum, 
freedom  in  ]NJO|-  un^{\  suggestion  begins  to  operate  does 

response.  .,..,,.  . 

individuality  commence  any  rapid  develop- 
ment. While  imitation,  therefore,  serves  to  give  the 
child  an  indispensable  basis  for  originality,  it  is  only  a 
basis.  An  organized,  growing  body  of  experience  in  a 
constant  state  of  reconstruction  is  possible  only  when  the 
individual  is  reacting  to  his  environment  as  a  series  of 
suggestions,  and  when  he  is  left  a  large  degree  of  free- 
dom in  his  responses. 

In  both  imitation  and  suggestion  the  response  may  be 
either  conscious  or  unconscious  of  its  stimulus  as  the  de- 
Conscious  and  termining  factor.  ^  The  child  may  con- 
unconscious  sciously  seek  to  imitate  the  act  of  another 
because  he  thinks  it  desirable  and  wishes  to 
perform  it,  as  when  boys  become  trapeze  performers  im- 
mediately upon  going  to  the  circus.  But  by  far  the 
greater  proportion  of  imitation  is  performed  without  any 
intention  of  copying  on  the  part  of  the  one  who  imitates. 
The  young  playmates  of  a  child  who  stammers  are  almost 
certain  to  contract  this  mode  of  speech;  a  case  of  St. 
Vitus  dance  may  cause  other  cases  by  unconscious  imi- 
tation; modes  of  speech,  manners,  qualities  of  voice, 
attitudes  of  mind,  moods,  and  various  other  attributes  of 


MODE  OF  INDIVIDUAL  DEVELOPMENT      215 

personality  are  copied  unconsciously  by  the  child  from 
those  about  him. 

The  same  holds  true  for  suggestion,  though  perhaps  not 
to  the  same  degree.  The  child  at  first  consciously  directs 
Habit  tends  n*s  resP°nse  to  most  of  the  suggestions  pour- 
to  fix  ing  in  upon  him ;  but  the  response  once 
started  in  a  given  direction,  habit  takes 
hold  and  tends  to  fix  the  response  in  this  one  direction. 
Attention  to  the  stimulus  then  falls  away.  While  of 
course  the  action  of  habit  is  necessary  in  order  to  secure 
a  set  of  automatic  reactions  dealing  with  typical  situa- 
tions, yet  there  is  a  constant  battle  between  habit  and 
idea.  The  idea  which  serves  as  the  suggestion  tends  to 
drop  out  when  the  response  to  it  has  become  automatic 
and  attention  is  no  longer  required.  The  problem  at 
this  point  is  to  preserve  a  proper  balance  between  habit 
and  idea,  so  that  there  may  be  a  constant  supply  of  stim- 
uli for  new  and  different  reactions;  that  is  to  say,  so  that 
the  different  aspects  of  the  environment  may  continue 
to  serve  as  suggestions  demanding  a  constant  reconstruc- 
tion of  experience. 

It  is  also  true  that  suggestion  may  work  unconsciously 

in  determining  the  tastes,  standards,  and  attitudes  of 

the  individual.    The  child  reared  in  a  home 

shapes  tastes,     environment  of  disorder,  squalor,  and  dirt 

standards,  and    ^j  forf  j^g  standards  influenced  by  these 

attitudes.  .  .  .  .      « 

conditions;  one  reared  in  a  home  of  culture, 
refinement,  and  cleanliness  will  unconsciously  develop 
tastes  requiring  these  things.  In  Hawthorne's  "The 
Great  Stone  Face/'  Ernest  found  his  character  uncon- 
sciously shaped  by  the  influence  that  had  played  upon 
him.  The  prevailing  quality  of  moods,  and  finally  the 
disposition,  is  largely  determined  by  the  characteristic 


216         SOCIAL  PRINCIPLES  OF  EDUCATION 

emotional  atmosphere  of  home  and  school.  It  becomes 
one  of  the  requisites  of  education,  therefore,  to  keep  the 
sources  of  suggestion  and  imitation  such  that  the  re- 
sponses shall  result  in  progress  and  development. 

Language  affords  the  child  the  opportunity  for  the 
next  great  advance  in  the  range  of  stimuli.  Once  in  corn- 
Language  mand  of  language,  he  is  no  longer  limited 
affords  a  greater  to  natural  environment  and  people  for  his 
ange  of  stimuli.  stjmujj  Words  come  to  stand  for  ideas; 
a  new  medium  of  expression  and  communication  is  pos- 
sessed; people,  objects,  and  places  are  created  out  of 
hand  by  means  of  description;  acts  and  events  are  made 
to  take  place  through  narration.  Through  language  the 
child  thus  becomes  independent  of  immediate  environ- 
ment as  the  sole  source  of  stimuli.  Environment  is  gen- 
eralized, and  the  range  of  stimuli  made  limitless.  A  new 
world  is  opened  up,  and  the  child,  through  entering  it, 
becomes  a  thinking  being,  able  to  communicate  his 
thought  and  understand  the  thought  of  others  by  means 
of  effective  and  easily  used  symbols.  After  reaching  the 
language  stage,  development  goes  on  with  great  rapidity, 
and  his  mental  progress  can  be  measured  with  fair  ac- 
curacy by  his  growth  in  vocabulary  and  its  use. 

The  language  impulse,  like  other  impulses,  has  its  rise 
when  the  child  is  ready  for  the  activities  that  it  prompts. 
Rise  of  the  ^  grows  immediately  out  of  and  ministers 
language  to  a  concrete,  growing  experience.  The 

reason  why  the  child  learns  language  is  that 
he  feels  the  need  of  it,  his  activities  demand  it,  his  experi- 
ence calls  out  for  it.  He  wants  to  ask  for  this  thing,  call 
attention  to  that  thing,  and  communicate  another  thing. 
To  do  this  he  must  have  words,  and  so  he  gropes  for  them. 
And,  having  through  imitation  found  them,  he  makes 


MODE  OF  INDIVIDUAL  DEVELOPMENT      217 

them  vitally  his  own  by  employing  them  in  the  working 
out  of  his  immediate  experience.  This  is  the  natural 
course  taken  by  language  in  any  stage  of  its  development. 
While  the  impulse  can  be  forced,  yet  it  is  forced  with 
waste  and  at  the  cost  of  efficiency.  A  child  can  be  taught 
to  imitate  words,  parrot-like,  when  he  is  very  young. 
But  words  learned  in  this  way  do  not  add  to  his  language 
ability  nor  to  his  general  development.  Similarly,  an 
older  child,  when  in  school,  may  be  taught  many  words 
from  the  printed  page  so  that  he  can  pronounce  them, 
and  spell  them,  and  perhaps  put  them  into  a  sentence 
modelled  after  one  in  the  text-book.  But  this  does  not 
add  to  the  language  equipment  of  the  child,  nor  to  his 
general  development.  Indeed  its  tendency  is  rather  to 
cripple  both.  Development  in  the  command  of  language 
is  correlative  with  the  growth  and  reconstruction  of 
experience;  neither  can  successfully  advance  without 
the  other.  Words  must  get  their  content  from  the  experi- 
ence content  of  the  individual,  and  the  content  of  experi- 
ence is  summed  up,  housed,  and  rendered  stable  through 
the  use  of  words. 

The  desire  for  self-realization  is  a  motive  in  later  de- 
velopment. Just  as  in  his  phylogenetic  development 

,.      ,.    .       man  is  compelled  first  to  attend  to  the  most 

Self-realization 

as  a  motive  pressing  necessities  of  his  material  environ- 
in  develop-  ment  before  he  has  time  to  reflect  on  him- 

ment.  .  . 

self,  so  in  his  ontogenetic  development  the 
child  follows  the  same  order.  The  world  of  the  not-self 
is  the  first  conceived  by  the  child ;  the  world  of  self  comes 
to  his  consciousness  only  when  he  has  progressed  some 
distance  in  his  mastery  of  the  not-self. 

Starting  at  birth  with  simple,  impulsive  responses  to 
purely  physiological  stimuli,  the  child  soon  comes  through 


218         SOCIAL  PRINCIPLES  OF  EDUCATION 

his  reactions  to  his  environment  to  a  consciousness  of 

the  stimuli  themselves.     He  has  now  made  his  start  on 

the  mastery  of  the  not-self.    Next  follows  a 

Predominance      .  ....  .  . 

of  the  not-self     large  group  of  instinctive  reactions  in  re- 
in early  sponse  to  a  wide  range  of  natural  and  so- 

expenence.  .,.  _     .       .,        .         . 

cial  stimuli.  Imitation  has  its  rise,  and  the 
individual  begins  the  great  process  of  modifying  his  in- 
stinctive reactions  to  adapt  them  to  a  particular  environ- 
ment; the  not-self  is  looming  still  larger  in  consciousness. 
Suggestion  takes  hold,  again  vastly  increasing  the  range 
of  stimuli  and  more  closely  Unking  the  not-self  to  the 
experience  process.  Language  is  added,  generalizing  the 
different  classes  of  stimuli,  and  placing  at  the  disposal  of 
the  child,  without  limitations  as  to  time  or  place,  the  typ- 
ical stimuli  that  have  entered  into  the  experience  of  the 
race.  The  world  of  the  not-self,  the  stimulus  world,  has 
now  come  to  occupy  a  very  large  place  in  the  conscious- 
ness of  the  individual. 

But  gradually  out  of  the  activities  of  the  experience- 
process  a  new  order  has  its  birth  in  consciousness;   the 

self  appears.  The  individual  is  now  not 
thyself  onlv  conscious  of  the  great  world  of  stimuli 

about  him,  but  also  becomes  conscious  of 
himself.  A  new  and  important  reality  has  now  entered 
into  his  experience-process;  a  puzzling  reality,  it  is  true, 
but  an  interesting  one.  The  self  is  no  longer  dimly  taken 
for  granted,  but  becomes  a  subject  of  reflection  and  in- 
sistent questionings  as  to  its  origin,  its  nature,  the  part 
it  has  to  play,  and  its  final  outcome  or  destiny. 


Self-conscious-       The  se^  *s  ^orn  onty  *n  t^ie     roes  of  the 

ness  originates    life-process.    It  has  its  rise  in  the  crush  of 

experience.     circumstances,  and  comes  to  consciousness 

in  the  storm  and  stress  —  the  crisis  of  experience.    The 


MODE  OF  INDIVIDUAL  DEVELOPMENT      219 

meeting  of  an  obstacle  here,  the  overcoming  of  a  difficulty 
there,  and  the  confronting  of  an  inexorable  law  in  another 
place,  and  the  individual  comes  out  of  it  all  to  realize 
that  there  are  the  two  related  orders,  self,  and  other 
things.  The  power  to  conceive  the  self  is  an  innate  ca- 
pacity, a  part  of  the  original  nature  of  the  individual; 
but,  like  other  powers,  it  must  reach  its  development 
through  the  reactions  of  the  self  to  its  environment.  The 
self  therefore  takes  in  large  degree  its  form  and  quality 
from  the  character  of  the  social  process  in  which  it  comes 
to  development. 

This  new  consciousness  of  the  self  introduces  an  im- 
portant factor  in  determining  the  direction  and  extent  of 
The  self  development.  It  adds  purpose,  certainty, 

demands  and  ideals.  The  individual  now  demands 

lon<  more  than  self -activity;  he  must  attain 
self-realization.  Deferred  goods,  and  ends  that  cannot 
be  immediately  realized,  begin  to  exert  their  influence. 
Ideals  are  set  up  for  future  accomplishment  and  plans 
are  made  whose  fruition  lies  far  ahead.  Ability  to  con- 
front the  disagreeable  with  patience  and  without  loss  of 
efficiency  is  being  developed.  All  this  takes  place,  how- 
ever, as  a  part  of  the  desire  for  self-realization,  and  once 
the  individual  fails  to  see  the  connection  between  a  line 
of  activity  and  the  realization  of  the  self,  the  concept 
of  the  self  loses  its  power  as  a  compelling  motive. 

Through  the  consciousness  of  the  self  as  an  order 
wholly  distinct  from  its  environment,  the  individual  is 
The  sense  of  brought  to  realize  that  he  is  not  only  one 
value  of  the  among  many,  a  part  of  society,  a  social  self, 
but  a  person  as  well.  He  comes  to  see  that 
he  must  not  only  aim  to  realize  the  social  ideal,  but,  even 
more,  to  realize  a  personal  ideal.  There  is,  of  course, 


220         SOCIAL  PRINCIPLES  OF  EDUCATION 

no  conflict  between  these  two  ideals;  indeed  they  cannot 
exist  apart;  but  yet  they  are  not  identical.  One  is  respon- 
sible in  some  degree  for  the  attainment  of  the  social  ideal; 
he  is  responsible  in  far  larger  measure  for  the  attainment 
of  the  personal  ideal.  It  matters  much  to  the  individual 
whether  the  social  process  is  resulting  in  progress;  it 
matters  still  more  to  him  whether  his  own  experience  is 
resulting  in  personal  progress;  that  is,  in  self-realization. 
Social  destiny  and  personal  destiny  are  closely  interre- 
lated, but  not  wholly  parallel;  for  the  life  of  society  is 
long  continued,  and  error  may  be  redeemed  through 
centuries  of  better  living;  but  the  life  of  the  individual  is 
limited  to  his  three-score-and-ten  years  and  mistakes 
cannot  be  atoned  for  in  the  flesh. 

Perhaps  the  first  step  in  the  conscious  realization  of 

the  self  is  self -appreciation,  or  a  recognition  of  the  worth 

of  the  person.  This  concept  is  fully  attained 

ciation  only  as  man  views  himself  in  the  light  of 

necessary  to       }£§  divine  origin,  his  great  capacities,  and 

self-realization.       .       .  ,°  r  . 

his  high  destiny.  To  take  oneself  senously 
in  the  great  life  drama,  to  believe  that  he  has  a  part  to 
play  which  cannot  quite  be  played  by  another,  to  believe 
that  he  is  helping  to  work  out  a  great,  constructive  plan, 
which  involves  his  own  destiny  and  that  of  the  race,  and 
to  feel  that  his  own  part,  though  small,  is  of  infinite  im- 
portance— this  concept  will  serve  at  once  as  balance 
wheel  and  motive  power  in  experience.  The  individual 
who  has  paused  to  reflect  seriously  on  his  origin,  his  ca- 
pacities, and  his  destiny  will  hardly  be  satisfied  with  a 
small  self.  He  will  hardly  question  whether  it  is  "worth 
while,"  even  when  the  way  seems  steep  and  the  load 
heavy,  but  will  calmly  determine,  "I  shall  arrive;"  and 
no  toil  will  then  seem  too  arduous  if  he  but  feels  that  he 


MODE  OF  INDIVIDUAL  DEVELOPMENT      221 

is  making  progress.  He  will  hardly  dare  to  defeat  the 
larger  purpose  for  his  life  by  lack  of  purpose  or  by  small 
purposes.  What  one  is  worth  to  himself,  what  he  may  do 
and  be  with  his  great  powers,  what  his  opportunities  and 
responsibility  as  a  person  are — all  this  constitutes  an  ob- 
ligation and  motive  for  self-realization  transcending  even 
the  obligations  growing  out  of  social  relationships.  Nor 
will  this  coveted  self  be  a  selfish  self.  For  this  is  a  contra- 
diction of  the  very  notion  of  a  large  self.  This  larger  self 
will  not  be  to  hoard  and  laud  and  admire,  but  to  serve. 
As  it  could  have  no  existence  outside  of  the  social  process, 
so  it  would  have  no  function  except  as  put  at  work  in 
doing  its  part  to  further  social  progress. 

777.     The  Social  Stimulus  to  Individual  Development 

All  development,  as  we  have  seen,  is  the  product  of 
stimulus  and  response.  Response  is  conditioned  by  the 
Stimulus  and  original  nature  of  the  individual;  stimulus 
response  are  is  the  function  of  the  environment.  There 
co-ordinates.  can  ^  ^Q  reSpOnse  except  to  some  stimulus 

that  calls  it  forth;  neither  can  any  phase  of  environment 
constitute  a  stimulus  except  as  it  excites  a  response. 
Stimulus  and  response  are  therefore  not  only  co-ordinates, 
they  are  also  complements;  each  is  dependent  on  the 
other  for  its  very  existence  and  reality.  Nor  is  this  a 
chance  or  accidental  relation.  The  nature  of  the  indi- 
vidual's responses  is  dependent  upon  the  demands  of  the 
stimuli;  at  the  same  time  the  individual  defines  the 
stimuli,  so  far  as  his  own  powers  and  capacities  are  con- 
cerned, by  the  character  of  his  response  to  them.  Hence 
stimulus  and  response  are  but  obverse  and  reverse  sides 
of  the  one  unitary  situation  in  experience. 


222         SOCIAL  PRINCIPLES  OF  EDUCATION 

While  response  is  primarily  individualistic  in  its  nature, 
stimulus  is  chiefly  social.  It  has  already  been  shown  that 
stimulus  *he  natural  aspect  of  environment  is  ap- 

primariiy  preached  and  interpreted  through  the  social, 

social.  rpjie  gtijnuii  arising  from  natural  environ- 

ment alone  may  determine  the  character  of  certain  of  the 
more  elementary  forms  of  response,  but  even  here  the 
social  motives  soon  begin  to  exert  their  influence.  The 
rigors  of  the  climate  are  the  immediate  stimuli  compelling 
the  activities  that  provide  clothing  and  shelter.  These 
are  a  fundamental  necessity  for  mere  physical  existence; 
yet  social  conventions  almost  from  the  first  determine 
the  precise  form  of  clothing  and  house.  Hunger  requires 
the  activities  of  the  chase  or  the  cultivation  of  the  soil. 
But  social  usage  prescribes  certain  rules  for  the  hunt, 
and  provides  for  ownership  of  the  fruits  of  labor. 

Without  doubt  the  wonderful  natural  beauty  and  the 
blue  skies  of  Italy  were  a  great  stimulus  to  the  artistic 
influence  of  impulse  of  her  people;  but  religious  fervor 
physical  and  the  rewards  offered  by  the  church  and 

mt*  society  for  masterpieces  of  art  were  a  still 
more  powerful  factor  in  producing  her  wonderful  galaxy 
of  artists.  So  also  the  placid  islands  of  Greece  were  favor- 
able for  philosophic  reflection;  but  we  must  look  for 
the  immediate  forces  that  produced  Socrates,  Plato,  and 
Aristotle  in  Greek  society  much  more  than  in  Greek 
geography. 

The  external  influences  that  go  to  shape  the  individual 
are  therefore  a  combination  of  both  physical  and  social 
Social  and  stimuli.  To  the  individual  himself,  cer- 
physicai  tainly  before  he  reaches  the  reflective  stage 

of  development,  the  physical  and  the  social 
are  never  consciously  differentiated.  They  rather  unite 


MODE  OF  INDIVIDUAL  DEVELOPMENT      223 

to  form  one  complex  situation,  whose  elements  he  does 
not  classify.  When  an  analysis  is  made,  it  is  usually 
found  that  the  social  stimuli  are  at  the  immediate  point 
of  contact  with  the  individual.  Yet  there  is  always  the 
background  of  natural  stimuli  upon  which  the  social  stim- 
uli rest,  and  which  play  a  considerable  part  in  shaping 
the  trend  of  social  development.  For  example,  it  is  doubt- 
ful whether  the  famous  Italian  school  of  art  could  have 
developed  in  the  midst  of  a  highly  industrial  and  com- 
mercial civilization;  but  neither  did  the  natural  resources 
of  Italy  permit  the  growth  of  such  a  civilization.  The 
celebrated  Greek  philosophers  would  have  had  their 
meditations  disturbed  by  living  neighbor  to  Wall  Street 
and  Fifth  Avenue;  but  the  riches  available  to  Greece 
did  not  render  Wall  Street  and  Fifth  Avenue  possible. 

The  nature  of  our  physical  environment  has  had  a 
great  influence  in  shaping  the  social  ideals  of  our  own 
_.  .  ,,  times.  The  untold  wealth  of  America's 

Physical  factors  .  . 

influencing  natural  resources  has  exerted  a  constant 
American  appeal  to  the  economic  impulses  of  our  peo- 
ple. A  rich  soil  has  stood  ready  to  return 
bountiful  harvests  with  little  labor;  mines  of  coal,  iron, 
gold,  and  other  minerals  and  metals  have  called  for  de- 
velopment; immense  forests  have  been  waiting  for  the 
mill  and  the  factory;  great  natural  waterways  have  in- 
vited to  commerce;  diversity  of  products  and  of  climate 
has  made  many  different  industries  possible.  Added  to 
this,  an  age  of  science  and  invention  supplied  the  tools 
and  equipment  for  exploitation  of  these  great  opportuni- 
ties. A  virile,  energetic,  and  cosmopolitan  people  were 
at  hand  to  undertake  the  conquest  of  all  this  material 
wealth.  The  response  to  the  stimulus  afforded  by  such 
conditions  has  been  a  very  natural  one,  and  has  simply 


224         SOCIAL  PRINCIPLES  OF  EDUCATION 

followed  in  the  line  of  least  resistance.  Social  evolution 
has  taken  its  direction  from  the  most  insistent  and  effec- 
tive stimuli. 

If  it  is  asked  why  we  do  not  in  our  civilization  of  the 
present  have  our  Shakespeares  and  our  Miltons,  our 
_  ,  Raphaels  and  our  Leonardos,  the  answer  is 

Development  \  .     .  .     . 

takes  line  of  that  it  is  entirely  probable,  or  rather  very 
most  effective  certain,  that  we  do  have  them.  The  differ- 

stimulus.  .  '    ,  .          ,  .  . 

ence  is  that  we  are  making  them  into  in- 
ventors and  financiers,  into  captains  of  industry  and 
scientists.  Man's  inherent  powers  cover  many  lines  of 
development  and  extend  to  many  kinds  of  achievement. 
And  those  powers  that  are  most  demanded  and  stimulated 
are  the  ones  that  come  to  fruition.  We  are  to-day  de- 
veloping in  our  youth  what  our  material  resources  make 
possible  and  what  our  social  ideals  are  calling  forth.  Our 
age  is  material  and  industrial,  rather  than  philosophical 
and  artistic.  The  billion-dollar  trust,  the  ten-thousand- 
mile  railway  line,  and  the  fifty-story  office  building  are 
insistent,  if  not  obtrusive,  facts  of  our  civilization.  These 
things  tend  to  fix  the  standard,  fire  the  ambition,  and  set 
the  goal  for  endeavor.  The  response  but  follows  the  most 
pressing  line  of  stimuli,  and  development  in  this  direction 
is  the  inevitable  result. 

Evidences  of  the  materialistic  attitude  of  our  civiliza- 
tion can  be  discerned  even  in  the  schools.  Our  people 
are  proud  of  their  schools  and  lavish  much 
money  upon  them.  All  administrators  of 
educational  systems  find,  however,  that  it  is 
greatly  easier  to  secure  financial  appropriations  for  the 
extension  of  school-houses  and  equipment  than  for  the 
payment  of  adequate  salaries  to  teachers.  Society  is  most 
ready  to  pay  for  values  that  can  be  seen.  During  the 


MODE  OF  INDIVIDUAL  DEVELOPMENT      225 

last  generation,  the  material  side  of  education  has  vastly 
improved.  Buildings,  laboratories,  libraries,  gymnasiums , 
and  equipment  of  all  sorts  have  been  generously  supplied 
from  the  public  purse.  But  during  this  period  of  rapid 
advance  in  the  material  basis,  the  personal  side  of  edu- 
cation has  not  been  given  the  same  support.  Teachers 
have  been  kept  on  what  is  barely  a  living  wage,  and  no 
adequate  preparation  for  teaching  is  yet  demanded.  The 
result  has  been  that  while  the  brick-and-mortar  aspect  of 
education  has  made  great  progress,  the  spiritual  side  has 
lagged  far  behind. 

We  may  say,  then,  that  the  social  matrix,  the  atmos- 
phere, in  which  each  new  generation  receives  the  stimuli 
necessary  to  their  development  comes  pri- 

Sum  of  •  .....  , 

environmental  manly  from  the  civilization  round  about 
influences  a  them.  The  social  institutions,  the  manners 

complex. 

and  customs  of  the  people,  the  nature  and 
organization  of  the  vocations,  the  habits  of  mind,  the 
interests,  and  ambitions  of  their  people  are  the  great  de- 
termining factors  which  go  to  shape  their  lives.  On  the 
other  hand,  the  character  of  the  soil,  the  streams,  the 
mountain  ranges,  the  oceans  and  deserts,  the  sky  and 
the  climate,  have  all  built  themselves  into  the  social 
structure  of  which  these  things  are  the  basis. 

These  two  agencies,  the  physical  and  the  social,  are 

inseparable.    Their  influence  can  be  traced  in  the  evolu- 

.  ,          tion  of  all  the  great  nations  of  history,  and 

The  social  ,.-7) 

the  immediate  it  is  constantly  at  work  in  moulding  the 
point  of  development  of  the  individual.  Yet  it  must 

contact. 

not  be  forgotten  that  the  social  is,  after  all, 
the  immediate  point  of  contact  of  the  individual  with  his 
environment.  Richness  of  soil,  productivity  of  mines, 
and  availability  of  lakes  and  streams  as  highways  of 


226         SOCIAL  PRINCIPLES  OF  EDUCATION 

commerce,  mean  nothing  to  the  child  until  they  are  in- 
terpreted to  him  through  the  values  put  upon  them  by 
society.  It  is  the  social  stimulus  that  must  finally  act 
as  the  chief  factor  hi  calling  forth  the  powers  and  capaci- 
ties of  the  individual.  Further,  the  development  of  the 
individual  takes  place  through  a  growing,  reconstructing 
process  of  experience.  Experience  must  have  content; 
and  the  experience  content  is  social.  Both  the  stimulus, 
therefore,  that  prompts  the  response  and  the  experience 
that  results  therefrom  are  ultimately  social  in  their 
nature. 

TWO  sources  The  social  stimuli  affecting  the  individual 
of  social  come  to  him  hi  two  ways:  (i)  from  what 

may  be  called  unorganized  sources,  or  those 
having  their  origin  in  the  heterogeneous  activities  of  the 
social  process;  and  (2)  from  the  organized  source  that  we 
call  the  school. 

It  is,  of  course,  obvious  that  the  activities  of  the  various 
social  institutions  and  vocations  are  not  organized  with 
reference  to  the  development  and  training 
of  the  child.  They  rather  have  in  view  the 
carrying  out  of  the  social  aims  of  the  adults 
who  participate  as  members  in  the  social  process.  These 
unorganized  agencies,  nevertheless,  constitute  one  of  the 
most  important,  if  not  the  most  important,  educational 
influence  in  the  life  of  the  child.  That  their  educational 
effects  are  not  specifically  anticipated  and  planned  by 
society,  and  that  they  are  not  consciously  received  by 
the  individual,  does  not  lessen  their  efficiency. 
Powerful  The  home,  for  example,  is  not  organized  or 

educational         its  activities  directed  primarily  for  the  train- 
ing of  the  child;  yet  the  atmosphere  of  the 
home,  its  moral  and  religious  standards,  the  type  of  its 


MODE  OF  INDIVIDUAL  DEVELOPMENT      227 

social  intercourse,  and  the  nature  of  the  fundamental 
relations  that  obtain  there  are  the  most  important  factors 
going  to  prepare  the  individual  for  his  present  or  his  fu- 
ture relations  to  the  home.  Similarly,  the  religious,  civic, 
and  industrial  activities  of  society  do  not  have  as  their 
end  the  education  of  the  young;  but  the  most  powerful 
influences  going  to  prepare  the  individual  for  participa- 
tion in  these  activities  are  the  influences  resulting  to  the 
child  from  his  contact  with  these  phases  of  the  social 
process.  Or,  again,  the  avocations  and  recreative  activi- 
ties of  society  are  not  shaped  for  their  effects  on  the 
child;  yet,  out  of  his  contact  with  the  plays  and  games, 
and  the  social  diversions  and  amusements  of  his  com- 
munity, the  individual  develops  his  avocational  stand- 
ards and  tastes,  and  learns  the  technique  of  play  and 
diversion. 

The  great  effectiveness  of  the  stimuli  coming  from  the 
unorganized  agencies  of  education  is  due,  first  of  all,  to 
c  .  their  close  and  vital  relation  to  the  experi- 

Source  of  ...••_•••..«•*«  •  • 

effectiveness  ence  of  the  child.  Their  appeal  is  very  im- 
found  LQ  mediate  and  concrete.  There  is  nothing 

immediacy. 

distant  and  forced  about  them.  Each  ac- 
tivity of  home  or  vocation  is  planned  and  carried  out 
with  reference  to  needs  and  desires  that  form  a  vital  part 
of  the  experience-process.  All  is  continuous  and  related; 
no  gaps  are  left  in  experience.  There  is  not  only  a  reason, 
but  a  necessity  for  every  activity.  Means  are  never  di- 
vorced from  ends,  for  the  end  is  consciously  in  view  and 
its  achievement  sought.  Hence  interest  is  direct  and 
effort  is  supported  by  desire. 

The  unorganized  stimuli  to  development  also  possess  a 
great  advantage  through  the  continuity  of  their  influence 
upon  the  life  of  the  individual.  They  begin  to  play  upon 


228         SOCIAL  PRINCIPLES  OF  EDUCATION 

him  at  birth  and  do  not  cease  until  death.  Before  he 
goes  to  school  the  individual  has  secured  an  amount  of 
Also  through  education  that  he  could  ill  afford  to  ex- 
continuity  of  change  for  all  that  he  will  receive  after  that 
influence.  time.  While  he  is  going  to  school,  also,  the 

unorganized  stimuli  continue  their  effect,  and  vie  with 
the  school  in  directing  the  development  of  the  child. 
And  even  after  the  school  has  done  its  part,  and  the 
individual  is  engaged  in  the  wider  activities  of  the  so- 
cial process,  these  unorganized  forces  are  still  operating 
to  shape  the  experience-process.  In  a  very  real  sense, 
therefore,  all  the  world  is  a  school  and  the  whole  of  life 
is  education. 

Through  the  school,  society  effects  an  organization  of 
the  stimuli  that  are  to  be  brought  to  bear  upon  the  de- 
The  school  velopment  of  the  individual.  By  selecting 
the  instrument  the  most  necessary  stimuli  and  assembling 
of  education.  them  within  ^  activities  of  the  school,  it 

is  no  longer  left  to  chance  to  insure  that  the  stimuli  requi- 
site to  development  will  present  themselves,  and  at  the 
right  time  and  in  the  right  order.  In  the  school,  society 
has  invented  an  instrument  for  the  carrying  out  of  its 
purpose  with  reference  to  the  education  of  the  new  gen- 
eration. Through  this  means  any  desired  end  in  the 
development  of  the  individual  may  be  approximately 
reached. 

The  primary  function  of  the  school  is  therefore  easily 
denned;  it  is  to  present  stimuli  to  the  child.  These  stimuli 

_     a      .        are  to  be  of  such  nature  that  they  shall  re- 
Function  of  .  .  J  , 
the  school          suit  in  responses  leading  to  development. 

to  present          Stated  differently,  the  school  is  to  direct 

stimuli.  .  . 

the  child  s  growing  experience  in  such  a 
way  that  it  shall  articulate  with  the  wider  social  ex- 


MODE  OF  INDIVIDUAL  DEVELOPMENT      229 

perience-process.  In  order  to  this  result,  the  control 
exercised  by  the  school  over  the  child's  experience  must 
be  chiefly  an  indirect  control.  That  is  to  say,  control 
over  the  individual  is  to  be  exercised  through  controlling 
the  stimuli  that  determine  his  responses.  If  certain  lines 
of  activity  are  desired,  the  stimuli  appealing  to  this  line 
of  activity  are  to  be  presented;  if,  on  the  other  hand, 
certain  lines  of  activity  are  to  be  suppressed,  the  stimuli 
prompting  to  these  lines  are  to  be  eliminated.  Further, 
whatever  acts  are  to  be  conserved  as  a  part  of  the  system 
of  responses  of  the  individual  are  to  be  rewarded  through 
social  approval,  and  other  means  of  causing  pleasure  to 
attach  to  them.  Similarly,  acts  that  are  to  be  prevented 
as  a  part  of  the  habitual  response  of  the  individual  are 
to  be  suppressed  through  social  disapproval,  and  other 
forms  of  unpleasant  experience  that  are  made  to  attach 
to  them.  Direction  of  the  child's  development  through 
control  of  the  situations  that  eventuate  in  conduct  leaves 
the  way  open  to  the  individual  for  self-activity  and  for 
cultivation  in  the  motives'  and  technique  of  self-control. 
Any  other  form  of  direction  exercised  over  the  experience 
of  the  child  substitutes  artificial  motives  for  conduct  and 
fails  to  lead  to  a  full  development  of  the  self. 

The  control  by  the  school  over  the  stimuli  effective 

in  shaping  the  child's  development  is  exerted  (i)  through 

the  intellectual  organization  of  the  school 

Means  by  .  '  . 

which  the  as  defined  in  the  curriculum,  and  (2)  in 
school  exerts  tne  sociai  organization  of  the  school  as 

influence.  .  ... 

manifested  in  its  organic  unity  with  soci- 
ety. A  further  analysis  of  these  two  factors  will  now 
follow. 


230         SOCIAL  PRINCIPLES  OF  EDUCATION 


REFERENCES 

Belts,  The  Mind  and  Its  Education,  ch.  XVI;  Bolton,  Prin- 
ciples of  Education,  chs.  XVI,  XXI-XXIII ;  Dewey,  How  We 
Think;  Fiske,  Meaning  of  Infancy;  Halleck,  Education  of  the 
Central  Nervous  System;  James,  Talks  to  Teachers,  chs.  Ill- VII; 
Morgan,  Animal  Behavior,  chs.  III-V;  Swift,  Mind  in  the  Mak- 
ing; Tarde,  Laws  of  Imitation,  ch.  VI;  Thorndike,  Educational 
Psychology. 


CHAPTER  X 

THE  CURRICULUM 
I,     The  Social  Origin  of  the  Curriculum 

Society  offers  to  each  new  generation  the  aggregate 
fruits  of  its  own  achievements.    From  the  beginning  of 

human  history,  man  has  been  accumulating 
culture?*  culture  and  civilization.  Out  of  the  daily 

lives  of  the  millions  of  peoples  of  all  tunes — 
out  of  their  toil  and  suffering,  their  hopes  and  dreams 
and  deeds,  have  come  some  permanent  values.  Some 
phases  of  experience  have  been  tried  and  tested  until 
they  have  been  found  typical  and  fundamental.  Culture 
and  civilization  consist  of  these  valuable  and  more  or 
less  permanent  aspects  of  social  experience. 

That  which  remains  to  us  as  culture  is,  therefore,  the 
sum  total  of  social  experience  up  to  this  time,  with  the 

mistakes  and  failures  left  out,  and  with  that 
vafuabielmd  which  was  only  temporary  forgotten.  And 
typical  from  much  of  the  experience  of  every  generation 
experience.  must  thus  fall  by  the  way.  For  no  matter 

how  fruitfully  man  lives,  or  how  vital  the 
experience-process,  a  considerable  proportion  of  his  ex- 
perience has  but  partial  and  temporary  value.  Much  that 
goes  on  in  the  social  process  lacks  significance  for  any 
other  social  situation  than  that  of  which  it  forms  a  part, 
and  hence  cannot  be  transferred  to  other  times  and 
places.  Some  phases  of  social  activity  may  lack  value 

231 


232         SOCIAL  PRINCIPLES  OF  EDUCATION 

even  for  their  own  day,  and  thus  not  be  worth  trans- 
mitting to  others.  A  great  deal  of  that  which  seems  most 
valuable  and  typical  to  one  age  must  of  necessity  possess 
less  value,  or  even  no  value,  for  later  generations  who 
have  grown  away  from  the  older  concepts  and  values. 

For  example,  much  of  what  was  called  science  in  the 
older  day  has  been  proved  false,  and  we  no  longer  study 
The  tem-  ^-  ^  ^as  no  relation  to  our  life  of  to-day 

porary  is  except  having  supplied  a  stepping-stone  for 

our  higher  knowledge.  Astrology  gave  way 
to  astronomy;  the  old  empirical  chemistry  has  been  sup- 
planted by  the  modern  exact  science.  Much  that  was 
taught  in  theology  has  disappeared  or  become  the  basis 
of  new  concepts.  Matter  that  was  prized  as  vital  history 
has  been  forgotten.  Tongues  that  prided  themselves  on 
their  power  to  sway  the  world  have  ceased.  Literary 
productions  hailed  as  final  in  finish,  form,  and  content 
are  no  longer  read.  Institutions  have  arisen,  lived  their 
little  day,  and  disappeared.  Only  time  and  change  are 
permanent.  These  are  the  test  of  all  things,  the  measure 
of  all  permanent  values. 

This  does  not  imply,  however,  that  nothing  has  value 
as  experience  except  that  which  can  withstand  the  rav- 
Even  the  tem-  aSes  °f  time  and  change.  The  pseudo- 
porary  may  science  of  ancient  times  did  supply  the  foun- 
have  value.  dation  for  later  scientific  achievement.  The 
literature  of  other  ages  than  the  Victorian,  even  if  it  has 
not  come  down  to  us  as  a  permanent  contribution,  served 
the  generations  that  produced  it  and  became  the  foun- 
dation for  other  literary  eras.  Slavery  and  feudalism 
have  passed  away,  but  they  seem  to  have  been  necessary 
stages  of  social  evolution.  Monarchical  forms  of  govern- 
ment are  just  disappearing,  but  they  were  the  only  fitting 


THE  CURRICULUM  233 

form  at  certain  stages  of  social  progress.  Generalizing 
these  facts,  we  may  say  that  in  any  advancing  society 
old  knowledge,  old  philosophies,  and  old  culture  must  con- 
stantly be  in  a  state  of  reconstruction  that  shall  keep  pace 
with  the  race's  progress.  Without  the  old  the  new  could 
not  come  into  existence,  yet  the  old  must  ever  give  way 
to  the  new.  Just  as  youth  is  intolerant  of  age,  and  thinks 
that  youth  has  the  greater  wisdom  and  the  greater  power, 
so  the  present  is  likely  to  be  intolerant  of  the  past,  for- 
getting its  great  achievements  and  the  debt  that  each 
generation  owes  to  those  that  have  put  it  into  possession 
of  the  tools  of  progress. 

But  even  with  the  dropping  out  of  the  phases  of  cult- 
ure that  are  ephemeral  or  unfit,  there  still  remains  a  vast 
amount  as  the  result  of  ages  of  accumula- 

Thc  vast  .  11.  .  1.1  1-11 

amount  of  tion,  and  this  amount  is  steadily  and  rapidly 
culture  increasing  with  every  generation.  Litera- 

remaining.  .  ,  ... 

tures  in  many  tongues  have  crystallized 
man's  best  thoughts,  his  deepest  feeling,  and  his  most 
sublime  aspiration.  Art  has  made  permanent  his  greatest 
concepts.  Science  has  pried  into  so  many  lines  that  no 
one  person  knows  more  than  an  infinitesimal  part  of  the 
whole.  History  sums  up  the  lessons  of  all  tunes  and  peo- 
ples. And  so  we  might  go  on  until  we  had  catalogued 
all  the  points  of  contact  of  man  with  his  environment. 
At  every  point  he  has  been  learning;  experience  has  been 
growing;  values  have  been  taking  form.  Here  in  a  poem, 
there  in  a  mathematical  formula,  again  hi  a  scientific 
law,  at  another  time  in  a  picture  or  a  statue,  or  in  the 
organization  of  an  institution,  the  invention  of  a  machine, 
the  perfecting  of  a  philosophy,  or  the  evolution  of  a  re- 
ligion, man  has  been  organizing  and  formulating  the 
most  vital  phases  of  his  experience.  And  this  is  what 


234         SOCIAL  PRINCIPLES  OF  EDUCATION 

each  generation  offers  to  the  one  that  follows,  thus  put- 
ting into  its  possession  the  incalculable  riches  of  the  ex- 
perience of  countless  millions  of  men.  Nor  can  the  new 
generation  refuse  the  heritage;  it  is  theirs.  They  must 
have  it  for  their  own  development,  and  must  conserve 
it  for  those  that  are  to  come  after. 

It  is,  of  course,  impossible  for  the  child  to  assimilate  to 

his  experience  all,  or  even  any  large  part,  of  this  great 

.    ,       mass  of  social  culture.     It  is  necessary, 

The  curriculum  ,  ,  •  «• 

a  selection  therefore,  to  make  some  more  or  less  arbi- 
from  this  trary  selection  from  the  accumulated  social 

material.  J  .  ,.,,.. 

experience  for  the  use  of  the  child  in  intro- 
ducing him  to  the  achievement  of  the  race.  The  phases  of 
social  experience  set  out  for  the  individual  to  recapitu- 
late is  called  the  curriculum.  It  consists  of  society's  se- 
lection of  the  best  from  its  own  achievements  set  apart 
and  organized  especially  for  the  child.  It  is  the  gate- 
way through  which  the  individual  is  to  pass  into  a  fuller 
consciousness  of  the  collective  life  and  achievements  of 
his  race. 


77.    The  Function  of  the  Curriculum 

The  curriculum  develops  the  social  consciousness  of 
the  individual.  The  child  is  lacking  in  perspective.  He 
Social  sees  himself  only  in  his  relation  to  the  pres- 

consdousness  ent  and  to  those  objects  whose  activities 
developed  immediately  touch  his  own  experience.  The 
through  the  distant  in  time  and  place  is  either  unknown 
or  lacking  in  reality.  The  concept  has  not 
yet  arisen  of  the  great  succession  of  human  generations 
of  which  his  own  life  is  a  part.  The  sphere  of  social  rela- 
tions is  very  narrow,  and  their  mutual  interdependence 


THE  CURRICULUM  235 

has  not  entered  the  child's  consciousness.  The  com- 
munity of  interests  and  the  continuity  of  social  experi- 
ence do  not  yet  appeal  to  him  or  impress  him. 

All  this  could  not  well  be  otherwise,  since  the  stimuli 
acting  upon  the  child  at  the  beginning  are  wholly  local 
and  immediate.  The  distant,  the  past,  and  the  future 
do  not  greatly  concern  him,  since  they  do  not  relate 
directly  to  his  experiences.  It  is  the  present  that  creates 
the  situations  demanding  his  interest  and  activities;  in 
a  very  true  sense,  therefore,  the  child  lives,  moves,  and 
has  his  being  in  the  present. 

A  large  part  of  the  development  of  the  individual  is 
concerned  with  the  broadening  of  this  point  of  view. 
Development  Narrowness,  provincialism,  and  immediacy 
requires  this  are  signs  of  imperfect  or  retarded  social 
socialization.  grOWth.  The  sense  of  time  must  come  to 
include  a  long  past  and  a  limitless  future,  and  the  sense 
of  terrestrial  space  to  extend  beyond  the  confines  of  com- 
munity or  nation.  Nor  are  these  to  be  conceived  as  empty 
duration  and  mere  physical  distance,  but  as  filled  with 
human  generations,  each  a  link  in  the  great  chain  of  life 
that  began  at  the  beginning  and  will  go  on  till  the  end. 
And  with  this  concept  must  rise  the  feeling  of  kinship, 
the  sense  of  relationship,  with  all  that  have  come  before 
and  that  will  come  after.  The  great  opportunities  open 
to  the  individual  to-day  are  to  be  accepted  as  a  gift  from 
other  times  and  people.  The  flag  is  to  represent  not  only 
the  freedom  of  our  present,  but  also  the  treasure,  the 
sacrifice,  and  the  suffering  of  those  who  gave  the  flag 
and  are  maintaining  its  principles.  Literature,  art,  and 
science;  all  inventions  and  discoveries;  the  wealth  of 
spiritual  culture  and  the  comforts  of  material  civiliza- 
tion are  to  be  accepted  as  bonds  of  human  brotherhood. 


236         SOCIAL  PRINCIPLES  OF  EDUCATION 

With  the  growth  of  this  concept,  the  individual  will  be 
broadened  in  his  social  interests  and  sympathies.  From 
being  a  member  of  a  particular  family,  he  will  grow  into 
a  member  of  a  state,  a  nation,  a  race.  He  will  become 
socialized. 

The  basis  of  any  deep  sense  of  relationship  is  the  reali- 
zation of  a  common  experience.  We  expect  sympathy 
and  understanding  only  from  those  who 
experience  have  had  experiences  similar  to  our  own. 
the  basis  of  Those  who  have  together  gone  through 
relationship.  common  hardships  or  dangers  thereafter 
feel  a  bond  of  relationship.  Persons  uniting 
in  a  common  cause  find  themselves  drawn  closer  together 
personally.  Soldiers  feel  a  special  interest  in  soldiers, 
artists  in  artists,  and  inventors  in  inventors.  Member- 
ship in  a  common  society,  fraternal  order,  or  church 
serves  as  a  ground  for  personal  acquaintance  and  relation- 
ship. Even  so  slight  a  basis  of  common  experience  as 
that  of  having  had  ancestors  who  were  in  the  war  of  the 
Revolution  creates  the  feeling  of  relationship  sufficient 
for  the  founding  of  an  organization  united  only  by  this 
bond.  Common  experience  is  therefore  the  meeting- 
ground  where  the  consciousness  of  relationship  and  com- 
radeship emerges.  It  is  the  ground  upon  which  the  in- 
dividual must  meet  society  and  come  ^o  realize  his  part 
in  the  drama  that  is  going  on  about  him. 

Through  the  curriculum  society  places   before   the, 
child  an  opportunity  for  common  experience  with  the 
„  race.   The  phases  of  culture  that  have  been 

Common  •          «      •       •  .  •  i      « 

experience  found  of  most  value  in  social .  evolution, 
through  the  an ^  fae  phases  that  are  most  vitally  related 

curriculum.  ,  .    ,  ,.    i  i 

to  the  social  process  of  the  present  day,  are 
organized  and  placed  before  the  child  that  he  may  incor- 


THE  CURRICULUM  237 

porate  them  in  his  own  experience.  Through  mastering 
in  his  experience  what  has  been  wrought  out  in  the  cen- 
turies of  struggle  and  growth  on  the  part  of  his  race,  the 
child  comes  to  feel  himself  of  a  kind  with  those  who  lived 
what  he  has  to  learn.  He  thereby  comes  to  conceive  him- 
self as  one  of  the  great  family  of  human  kind,  and  catches 
step  with  the  spirit  of  progress  in  society. 

It  is  through  mastering  the  technique  of  the  manual 
arts,  and  learning  the  history  of  their  use  among  other 
peoples,  that  the  child  enters  into  the  experience  of  the 
workers  of  all  time  and  feels  himself  as  one  with  them. 
Through  the  study  of  geography  he  rediscovers  the  con- 
tinents and  the  oceans,  the  natural  resources  of  the  earth, 
and  all  that  goes  to  make  the  earth  the  home  of  man, 
thus  epitomizing  in  his  experience  what  the  race  has  been 
ages  in  accomplishing.  In  his  study  of  science,  of  art, 
of  institutions,  the  opportunity  is  the  same.  The  child 
recapitulates  in  brief  the  achievements  of  society,  and 
through  this  common  experience  develops  his  social  con- 
sciousness until  it  can  conceive  man  in  the  large  and  feel 
kinship  with  all. 

The  curriculum  stimulates  the  activities  leading  to 
development.  The  child  owes  his  original  nature  to 
The  curriculum  heredity;  his  powers  and  capacities  come 
a  stimulus  to  him  from  the  race,  and  therefore  bear 
•  activity.  racial  characteristics.  This  implies  that 
ontogeny  follows  the  trend  of  phylogeny;  the  individual 
'develops  under  the  same  stimuli  and  according  to  the 
same  laws  that  hold  for  the  race.  It  is  true  that  the 
individual  takes  advantage  of  many  short  cuts,  and  pos- 
sibly even  wholly  omits  many  aspects  of  racial  experi- 
ence. Making  allowance  for  this  fact,  we  may  say  that 
the  individual  develops  his  powers  and  capacities  by 


238         SOCIAL  PRINCIPLES  OF  EDUCATION 

recapitulating  in  his  experience  the  typical  activities  of 
the  race. 

Just  as  the  child  at  birth  has  implicit  in  him  all  the 
powers  and  capacities  that  will  be  his  in  the  ripeness  of 
The  child  adult  life,  so  the  race  at  the  dawn  of  its 

develops  history  had  potential  hi  itself  all  the  powers 

Sating'tiTe  of  the  ra<*  at  this  meridian  of  its  life.  Man 
activities  of  has  made  those  potential  powers  actual 
through  their  use  in  the  mastery  of  his 
world,  and  in  the  process  he  has  achieved  the  culture 
that  he  offers  to  each  new  generation.  The  individual 
must  follow  the  same  course.  The  child  will  reach  the 
development  of  his  powers  and  capacities  only  through 
their  use  in  solving  in  his  experience  the  problems  that 
the  race  has  solved  before  him — through  living  in  minia- 
ture the  life  that  society  has  lived  in  large. 

Man  owes  the  technique  attained  by  the  hand  to  the 
problems  that  have  resulted  in  the  evolution  of  the  arts 
in  concrete  an{^  ^e  handicrafts;  the  child  attains  con- 
situations  of  trol  and  manual  skill  through  that  part  of 
the  curriculum  that  provides  for  the  manual 
and  industrial  arts.  Man  developed  the  number  concept 
through  meeting  those  problems  of  social  experience  that 
have  resulted  in  the  growth  of  the  science  of  mathematics; 
similarly,  the  child  develops  his  number  concept  by  hav- 
ing reproduced  in  the  curriculum  the  situations  demand- 
ing a  knowledge  of  number.  Again,  man  developed  much 
of  his  ability  to  think  through  confronting  in  his  experi- 
ence the  situations  whose  mastery  has  given  us  the 
sciences;  similarly,  the  child  develops  his  power  of 
thought  by  rediscovering  the  typical  problems  of  science 
supplied  by  the  curriculum. 

Development  occurs,  as  we  have  already  seen,  only 


THE  CURRICULUM  239 

through  the  reconstruction  of  experience.    But  experi- 
ence is  not  empty;  it  must  have  content.    The  curric- 
,   .       ulum  immensely  increases  the  content  of 

The  curriculum  » 

broadens  the       the  child  s  experience;  it  also  defines  to  the 
content  of          individual  the  typical  and  universal  from 

experience.  .  .  ,          .  _.,  , 

the  experience  of  society.  The  content  of 
experience  dependent  wholly  on  stimuli  coming  from  the 
immediately  present  cannot  but  be  narrow  and  trivial. 
Values  are  distorted,  and  the  trivial  and  insignificant 
come  to  dominate.  Through  the  curriculum  the  child 
finds  himself  in  the  presence  of  stimuli  coming  from  all 
times  and  peoples.  His  thought  is  emancipated;  he  is 
freed  from  the  accidents  of  time  and  place.  His  concepts 
become  generalized,  and  his  interests  and  sympathies 
correspondingly  broadened. 

The  curriculum  leads  the  individual  to  adjustment  in 
the  social  process.  We  have  defined  the  aim  of  education 

as  that  of  fitting  the  individual  into  the 
in  thfsodai  social  activities  of  his  time  as  a  positive, 
process  secured  contributing  force.  This  is  accomplished 
c^rrkidum6  through  cultivating  in  the  child  a  constantly 

growing,  reconstructing  experience  increas- 
ingly controlled  by  himself  with  reference  to  social  needs 
and  demands.  This  is  to  say  that  the  experience-process 
of  the  individual  and  that  of  society  shall  come  more  and 
more  to  merge,  but  without  the  individual  losing  his 
identity  as  an  individual  in  the  process. 

The  chief  instrument  devised  by  society  for  effecting 
the  union  between  the  activities  of  the  individual  and 
Methods  for  those  of  society  is  the  curriculum.  The  cur- 
securing  riculum  accomplishes  this  end  (i)  through 

the  creation  of  certain  attitudes,  or  stand- 
points, toward  the  various  social  activities;  and  (2) 


240         SOCIAL  PRINCIPLES  OF  EDUCATION 

through  providing  the  individual  with  the  knowledge  and 
technique  required  in  the  typical  social  activities. 

Each  individual  must  have  some  life-theory,  some 
judgment  of  social  values,  an  estimate  of  what  is  most 
worth  while  in  experience.  He  must  con- 
o™attitude?  s^er  now  ^es^-  *°  invest  his  powers  in  order 
to  achieve  the  largest  returns  for  himself 
and  society.  Above  all,  he  must  feel  the  necessity  of 
making  an  investment  of  his  powers,  of  entering  fully 
into  his  share  of  the  world's  work  and  its  play.  To  ac- 
complish these  ends,  the  individual  must  have  some  basis 
for  comparison.  He  cannot  judge  from  the  data  supplied 
by  his  immediate  environment.  He  must  know  what 
mankind  has  done,  what  it  is  now  doing,  and  what  lies 
ahead  waiting  to  be  done.  He  must  come  into  touch  with 
all  the  broad  lines  of  the  world's  achievements.  He  must 
apprehend  the  meaning  and  value  of  the  social  institu- 
tions, and  feel  his  relation  to  them.  He  must  see  the  sig- 
nificance of  the  vocations  through  which  the  work  of 
the  world  is  accomplished  and  its  civilization  built.  The 
world's  science,  its  literature,  and  its  art  must  exert  its 
appeal  to  his  experience. 

Only  when  the  individual  has  thus  come  into  posses- 
sion of  the  typical  aspects  of  social  culture  has  he  ade- 
Need  for  quate  ground  for  personal  decision  as  to  the 

basis  for  most  desirable  and  profitable  lines  for  the 

investment  of  his  own  activities.  Without 
such  basis,  chance,  or  trivial  circumstance  is  the  deter- 
mining influence,  and  the  individual  has  little  control 
over  the  processes  of  his  own  experience.  He  is  but 
a  puppet,  a  cog  in  the  great  wheel,  the  direction  of 
whose  turning,  even,  he  does  not  know  and  cannot  in- 
fluence. 


THE  CURRICULUM  241 

The  curriculum  is  a  powerful  factor  in  shaping  the 
individual's  standpoint  toward  the  various  social  activi- 
o  -  i  -j  ,  ties  and  in  denning  his  attitude  toward 

Social  ideals  .  ' 

to  be  incul-        social  values.    What  society  puts  into  the 
cated  through      curriculum  of  its  schools  finally  comes  out 

the  curriculum.  .  .  J 

as  national  ideals  and  achievements.  Let 
England  decide  that  the  aim  of  education  is  to  produce 
a  gentleman,  polished  and  elegant  of  manner,  impatient 
of  labor,  and  more  able  to  spend  than  to  earn  his  money, 
and  the  desired  product  is  easily  secured  through  the 
public  schools  of  the  empire.  On  the  other  hand,  let 
Germany  determine  to  inculcate  in  her  youth  the  spirit 
of  patriotism  for  a  united  fatherland,  and  in  a  generation 
she  can  accomplish  the  result  through  the  office  of  her 
schools.  Similarly,  our  own  schools  are  found  to  be  the 
most  effective  agency  for  teaching  the  elements  of  de- 
mocracy to  the  millions  of  foreigners  who  flock  to  our 
shores. 

If  literary  and  aesthetic  lines  of  study  are  not  given  a 
place  in  the  curriculum  of  the  schools,  a  national  decline 

in  literature  and  art  may  be  expected  to 

Illustrations.  J 

follow.  If  scientific  subjects  are  neglected, 
the  nation  will  soon  be  found  to  suffer,  by  comparison 
with  the  nations  which  emphasize  these  subjects,  in  the 
record  of  its  scientific  achievements.  Similarly,  a  cur- 
riculum rich  in  literary,  scientific  and  aesthetic  studies, 
but  lacking  all  industrial  and  vocational  subjects,  has  a 
tendency  to  produce  a  people  who  neglect  industrial  pur- 
suits and  seek  occupations  in  the  direction  taken  by  their 
training.  Such  a  society  will  be  at  a  disadvantage  in  the 
economic  aspects  of  its  social  activities,  and  will  suffer  in 
competition  with  other  nations  having  a  curriculum 
which  includes  the  industrial  and  vocational  studies. 


242         SOCIAL  PRINCIPLES  OF  EDUCATION 

One  result  of  the  relative  neglect  of  vocational  subjects 
and  the  emphasis  put  upon  what  have  been  called  dis- 
_  ,A  .  ciplinary  studies  in  our  schools  is  seen  in 

Results  from  , 

lack  of  the  tendency  for  too  large  a  proportion  of 

vocational  our  educated  people  to  find  occupation  in 
lines  where  the  work  of  the  hand  is  reduced 
to  a  minimum.  The  consequence  has  been  for  many 
people  to  look  upon  education  as  a  means  of  escaping  the 
industries  and  attaching  themselves  to  the  professions  or 
other  occupations  not  requiring  manual  labor.  The  effect 
of  this  attitude  has  been  to  overcrowd  nearly  all  profes- 
sional lines,  clerkships,  small  mercantile  positions,  and 
similar  occupations. 

A  second  result  of  the  lack  in  our  curriculum  of  sub- 
jects bearing  directly  upon  the  concrete  problems  of  the 
Formation  of  social  process  is  a  corollary  growing  out  of 
educational  the  result  just  discussed.  This  is  the  wide- 
caste*  spread  notion  that  education  is,  except  in 

its  rudiments,  for  the  class  who  do  not  work  with  their 
hands  and  that  it  does  not  belong  to  the  workers.  The 
relation  of  education  to  successful  participation  in  the 
activities  of  vocation,  home,  state,  or  other  social  insti- 
tution, is  not  seen.  The  outcome  of  this  attitude  toward 
education  cannot  be  other  than  to  produce  social  caste — 
the  feeling  that  education  is  for  one  class  of  society,  but 
not  for  another;  that  it  is  for  one  group  of  occupations, 
but  does  not  affect  other  groups.  Thus,  the  great  funda- 
mental aim  of  education,  that  of  socializing  the  indi- 
vidual and  increasing  the  force  and  effectiveness  of  the 
social  bond,  is  defeated  through  the  agency  of  education 
itself. 

It  has  already  been  shown  that  education  does  not 
consist  in  disciplining  powers  and  capacities  in  the  ab- 


THE  CURRICULUM  243 

stract,  but  in  training  them  to  successful  functioning  in 
the  activities  of  an  immediate  social  process.  Knowledge 

The  concrete         ^°es  no<-  ex^  ^°r  ^S  OWn  sa^e,  but  to  give 

bearing  of  a  basis  for  control  in  the  real  affairs  of  life, 
education.  Culture  is  not  the  result  of  the  polishing 
and  refining  of  a  set  of  intangible  attributes  of  the  person- 
ality, but  consists  in  developing,  balancing,  and  perfect- 
ing the  powers  and  technique  of  the  individual  function- 
ing in  a  fruitful  way  in  social  activities. 

The  concept  of  the  disciplinary  functions  of  the  cur- 
riculum has  prevailed  in  large  degree  for  several  centuries, 
__  ,  .  and  is  even  now  but  slowly  giving  way  be- 

Prevalenceof  JJ=     .    f.        J 

disciplinary  fore  the  social  concept.  Discipline  must 
*"* m.  finally  come  to  be  defined  as  synonymous 

education.  ».«    •  i  i  i  r 

with  increased  control  on  the  part  of  the 
individual.  The  disciplined  mind  is  the  one  that  knows 
how  to  meet  and  solve  the  problems  of  a  certain  field  of 
experience  in  the  best  possible  way.  And  in  order  that 
the  discipline  shall  be  of  value  to  the  individual,  the  field 
of  experience  for  which  the  discipline  prepares  must  co- 
incide with  the  social  activities  in  which  he  is  to  engage. 
Discipline,  therefore,  not  only  means  power  of  control, 
but  it  implies  a  control  that  is  so  immediate  and  concrete 
that  it  extends  to  every  problem  met  in  the  routine  of 
experience,  whether  this  experience  be  in  the  home,  the 
shop,  the  office,  the  studio,  on  the  farm,  or  any  other 
form  of  activity  whatever. 

Set  over  against  the  disciplinary  aim  of  education  has 
been  the  utility  aim.  As  understood  by  many,  these  two 
utility  vs.  aims  are  not  only  distinct,  but  in  large  de- 

discipiinary        gree  mutually  exclusive  and  opposed.    In 

the  disciplinary  concept  the  emphasis  is 
put  upon  the  activity  of  consciousness,  with  little  reference 


244         SOCIAL  PRINCIPLES  OF  EDUCATION 

to  its  content.  In  the  utility  concept,  on  the  other  hand, 
the  chief  emphasis  is  placed  on  the  content,  or  information, 
side  of  experience.  Stated  differently,  if  the  content 
of  experience  has  no  immediate  or  particular  point  of 
contact  with  the  social  activities,  the  educational  result 
is  discipline;  but  if  the  experience  content  immediately 
and  directly  touches  the  activities  of  the  social  process, 
the  educational  result  is  utility.  The  final  outcome  of 
discipline  in  education  has  been  vaguely  conceived  as 
culture,  and  that  of  utility  as  a  kind  of  practical  ability 
lacking  in  the  elements  of  culture. 

But  the  relationship  between  these  conflicting  con- 
cepts is  not  quite  so  simple  as  it  would  appear  from  this 
Relation  statement.  True  utility  is  not  synonymous 

between  the       with  mere  information  any  more  than  dis- 

two  3-ims.  •    i  •         •  • ,  i  » *    *  A 

cipline  is  synonymous  with  mere  activity 
of  mind.  It  is  true  that  utility  rests  upon  information; 
the  individual  must  know  the  field  with  which  his  experi- 
ence has  to  deal.  The  content  of  his  experience  must  be 
a  social  content,  related  to  his  activities.  But  mere  quan- 
tity does  not  make  information  useful  as  a  guide  to  experi- 
ence and  hence  does  not  constitute  utility.  Information 
must  be  organized  into  a  unified  body  of  knowledge  capa- 
ble of  functioning  as  a  stimulus  and  guide  to  the  con- 
tinuous reconstruction  of  experience  before  it  becomes 
utility.  It  is  not  packed  away  as  so  many  facts,  or  so 
much  acquired  technique,  but  is  constantly  utilized  in 
adding  to  the  knowledge  and  skill  of  the  individual  in 
mastering  the  problems  arising  from  his  social  activ- 
ities. 

Viewed  from  this  standpoint,  there  is  no  fundamental 
conflict  between  the  concept  of  discipline  and  that  of 
utility  in  education.  Or,  differently  stated,  this  point  of 


THE  CURRICULUM  245 

view  eliminates  altogether  the  concept  of  discipline  as  an 
end  in  education,  in  so  far  as  it  undertakes  to  separate  the 
educative  effects  of  any  activity  of  con- 
efficiency  sciousness  from  the  content  of  conscious- 
inciudes  disci-  ness.  The  content  of  experience  becomes 
^e  ^rst  matter  of  consideration  in  educa- 
tion, and  the  method  of  organizing  this 
content  in  the  learning  process  the  next  consideration. 
The  result  of  effective  organization  of  valuable  content  in 
experience  is  culture.  Culture  is,  therefore,  but  a  name 
for  the  entire  process,  and  cannot  exist  in  the  absence 
either  of  fruitful  content  or  effective  organization  of  ex- 
perience. The  educational  concept  could  without  doubt 
be  greatly  clarified  by  dropping  out  of  discussion  the 
three  controverted  terms,  discipline,  utility,  and  culture, 
no  one  of  which  has  any  accepted  definition,  and  substi- 
tuting for  the  vague  and  overlapping  meaning  of  the  three 
the  term  social  efficiency. 

Social  efficiency  means  the  ability  to  enter  into  a  pro- 
gressive social  process  and  do  one's  part  toward  advan- 
Meaning  of  c^nS  the  interests  of  the  whole,  while  at  the 
social  same  time  attaining  the  highest  degree  of 

realization  for  the  self.  It  is  the  function 
of  the  curriculum  to  put  the  individual  into  possession 
of  the  knowledge  and  technique  necessary  for  the  ac- 
complishment of  this  end. 

To  illustrate:  the  relations  in  the  home  require  not 

only  right  attitudes  and  impulses,  but  also  a  basis  of 

knowledge  with  reference  to  the  particular 

Social 

efficiency  problems  arising  in  the  home.  A  knowledge 

°^  home  economics  leading  to  a  wise  ex- 
penditure of  money  for  the  support  of  the 

home  would  immeasurably  increase  its  efficiency  as  a 


246         SOCIAL  PRINCIPLES  OF  EDUCATION 

social  institution.  A  knowledge  of  certain  biological  laws 
and  the  course  of  genetic  development  is  essential  to  the 
care  and  rearing  of  children.  An  understanding  of  the 
rules  of  hygienic  living  would  greatly  decrease  the  amount 
of  sickness  and  disease,  lower  the  rate  of  mortality,  and 
increase  efficiency.  Knowledge  of  child  nature  and  the 
laws  of  mental  development  would  enable  parents  to 
contribute  much  to  the  education  of  their  children. 
These  matters  deal  with  some  of  the  greatest  and  most 
fundamental  values  of  experience,  and  their  control  can- 
not be  left  to  natural  impulse  or  chance  information 
without  grave  danger  both  to  the  individual  and  society. 

And  similarly  in  the  case  of  other  social  institutions 
and  activities.  Efficient  participation  requires  knowledge 
Soriaj  and  technique.  To  be  a  good  citizen  of  the 

efficiency  in  state,  one  must  have  a  knowledge  of  the 
IM*  purpose  of  government,  of  the  machinery  of 
his  own  government,  and  the  nature  of  the  social  problems 
confronting  the  state.  If  one  is  to  stand  in  right  relations 
to  the  school  and  do  his  part  as  patron,  taxpayer,  or 
official,  he  requires  a  comprehension  of  the  nature  and 
aim  of  education  and  a  knowledge  of  the  organization 
and  functions  of  the  school  as  the  instrument  of  educa- 
tion. To  enter  successfully  into  a  vocation,  whether  in- 
dustrial, professional,  or  any  other,  the  individual  must 
have  a  concept  of  the  place  of  work  in  human  progress, 
and  a  particular  knowledge  of  and  technique  in  the  vo- 
cation selected.  Or,  if  one  is  to  make  fruitful  use  of  the 
avocations,  he  must  see  the  relation  of  avocations  to  de- 
velopment and  efficiency,  and  learn  the  technique  of  the 
avocations  chosen. 

And  so  we  might  catalogue  all  the  more  significant  and 
fundamental  phases  of  social  participation,  and  in  each 


THE  CURRICULUM  247 

field  we  should  find  that  the  knowledge  required  is  too 
complex,  or  the  skill  demanded  too  refined,  to  leave  its 
acquisition  to  chance  contact  of  the  individual  with 
opportunities  for  learning  it  empirically.  The  curriculum 
finds  one  of  its  greatest  functions  in  equipping  the  indi- 
vidual for  the  meeting  of  social  demands. 

///.    The  Content  of  the  Curriculum 

The  content  of  the  curriculum  is  to  be  determined  by 

its  function.    If,  as  we  have  concluded,  the  function  of 

the  curriculum  is  to  bring  to  consciousness 

Content  of  ........  -          . 

the  curriculum  in  the  individual  a  sense  of  social  values, 
determined  to  serve  as  a  stimulus  to  the  development 

by  &im. 

of  his  powers  and  capacities,  and  to  lead  to 
his  adjustment  in  the  social  process,  then  the  curriculum 
must  contain  the  subject-matter  that  will  accomplish 
these  ends.  If  through  the  curriculum  the  child  is  to 
learn  to  judge  and  appreciate  social  values,  it  is  evident 
that  these  values  must  be  represented  in  the  curriculum; 
if,  through  this  agency  his  powers  and  capacities  are  to 
receive  the  stimuli  adequate  to  their  development,  then 
the  curriculum  must  contain  the  matter  that  will  secure 
response  from  the  individual;  or,  if  he  is  to  be  led  to  ad- 
justment in  the  social  process,  the  matter  of  the  curricu- 
lum must  be  of  such  nature  as  to  create  right  attitudes  to- 
ward social  values  and  supply  the  knowledge  and  skill 
necessary  to  efficient  social  participation. 

We  may  look  upon  the  curriculum  as  a 

Principles  .  J          . 

determining  series  of  stepping-stones  by  which  the  child 
content  of  mounts  from  the  isolation  of  individual 

curriculum. 

consciousness  and  the  weakness  of  unde- 
veloped powers  to  the  fulness  of  social  consciousness 


248         SOCIAL  PRINCIPLES  OF  EDUCATION 

and  the  strength  of  ripened  powers.  It  is,  therefore, 
important  that  the  curriculum  should  present  the  very 
cream  of  social  experience  and  culture.  It  must  be  well 
rounded  and  balanced,  not  omitting  important  phases  of 
subject-matter,  nor  insisting  on  an  excess  of  other  phases. 
It  must  deal  with  what  is  significant  and  fundamental. 
It  must  not  overwork  the  child  nor  crowd  his  time  so  full 
that  opportunity  is  not  given  to  develop  a  permanent 
interest  in  the  great  lines  of  culture  and  secure  more  than 
a  smattering  of  knowledge  about  them.  The  field  of 
culture  from  which  the  selection  of  the  curriculum  is  to 
be  made  is  so  rich  and  so  broad,  and  the  time  of  the 
child  for  its  mastery  is  so  short,  that  the  problem  of  the 
content  of  the  curriculum  becomes  one  of  the  most  vital 
questions  connected  with  education. 

With  the  enormous  increase  in  the  amount  of  material 
available  for  the  curriculum  in  modern  times,  and  with 
Modem  *ne  growmg  concept  that  it  is  through  the 

enrichment  of  mastery  of  this  culture  that  the  child  be- 
the  curriculum.  comes  an  efficient  member  of  society,  it  is 

not  strange  that  the  curriculum  has  grown  greatly  richer 
than  in  earlier  times.  Bacon  and  other  philosophers  of 
his  day  dreamed  of  and  worked  upon  a  pansophic  scheme 
of  education — a  plan  by  which  the  child  could  accom- 
plish the  mastery  of  all  social  culture.  No  such  dream 
is  indulged  to-day,  yet  the  amount  of  material  organized 
as  a  curriculum  is  rather  appalling.  Field  after  field 
has  been  opened  up,  and  new  subjects  have  constantly 
been  seeking  admission  into  the  curriculum.  Old  sub- 
jects have  been  loth  to  give  way,  and  the  consequence 
has  been  an  overcrowding  of  the  curriculum  in  certain 
parts  of  the  educational  system. 
The  volume  of  material  available  for  the  curriculum 


THE  CURRICULUM  249 

has  resulted  in  its  division  into  various  courses  of  study, 
each  arranged  with  reference  to  the  correlation  of  its  sub- 
Multiplication  Jects  and  the  tmie  required  for  its  comple- 
of  courses  tion.  This  has  gone  on  until  many  high 
and  subjects.  schoois  now  offer  courses  sufficient  to  need 
twelve  or  even  sixteen  or  twenty  years  for  their  mastery, 
instead  of  the  four  years  allotted  to  the  high-school  work. 
Colleges  are  offering  a  curriculum  that  would  require  from 
twelve  to  twenty-five  years  for  its  completion.  Univer- 
sities are  multiplying  their  courses  almost  endlessly,  so 
that  it  would  now  take  some  four  hundred  years  to  cover 
the  courses  of  the  greatest  universities.  It  has  now  come 
to  the  point,  therefore,  where  there  must  not  only  be  the 
selection  of  a  curriculum  for  our  schools,  but  also  a  selec- 
tion within  that  curriculum  suiting  it  to  the  capacities 
and  needs  of  the  individual  students. 

The  factors  that  go  to  determine  the  content  of  the 
curriculum  are  chiefly  three:  (i)  tradition,  (2)  profession- 
alism, and  (3)  social  demands.     Tradition 

Influence  of  .    .          . 

tradition  in  plays  a  large  part  in  determining  the  cur- 
determining  nculum.  The  very  fact  that  education 

curriculum.  J  ,   f        •. 

must  draw  so  largely  on  the  past  for  its 
material  makes  it  conservative.  That  which  has  been 
found  serviceable  as  educational  material  hi  one  genera- 
tion or  century  has  a  tendency  to  carry  over  to  the  next 
generation  or  century.  The  old  finally  becomes  sacred 
through  its  very  antiquity,  and  he  who  suggests  the  elim- 
ination from  the  curriculum  of  anything  which  has  long 
held  its  position  is  looked  upon  as  an  iconoclast,  if  indeed 
not  as  an  irreligious  and  irresponsible  meddler.  So  firmly 
do  these  traditional  values  take  hold  of  the  popular  imagi- 
nation that  many  parents  would  select  one  certain  pro- 
fession for  their  son,  not  because  they  think  he  is  best 


250         SOCIAL  PRINCIPLES  OF  EDUCATION 

fitted  for  it,  but  because  in  their  minds  it  stands  tradi- 
tionally for  larger  honor  and  position.  It  is  not  unusual 
to  choose  courses  of  study  in  the  college  or  the  high  school 
in  the  same  way.  Nor  is  it  strange  that  branches  that 
have  been  long  in  the  curriculum  should  come  to  be 
looked  upon  as  absolutely  essential  to  education;  though 
many  who  so  regard  them  could  probably  give  little  or 
no  reason  for  this  opinion  except  that  such  branches  have 
long  been  studied.  The  force  of  tradition  exerts  its 
influence  in  all  phases  of  our  experience  and  proves  a 
valuable  balance-wheel  to  our  activities.  We  need  to  be 
saved  from  too  readily  giving  up  the  old  and  tried  values 
for  the  new.  The  problem  is  to  save  the  old  without 
allowing  it  to  block  our  progress. 

It  is  not  meant,  therefore,  that  a  branch  should  be 

dropped  from  the  curriculum  just  because  it  has  been 

long  there.    The  time  that  a  subject  has 

Right  of  a  ,      &  .  .  i        ,.     i  i  . 

branch  to  hold  been  in  the  curriculum  has  little  or  nothing 
its  place  to  £Q  w[fa  fae  question  of  its  remaining 

in  curriculum. 

there.  That  question  should  be  decided 
solely  upon  the  ability  of  such  branch  to  educate  the 
powers  and  capacities  of  the  child  of  to-day  for  the  life 
of  to-day.  That  the  branch  has  had  value,  or  that  it 
may  have  value  now,  will  not  suffice.  It  must  have  greater 
value  than  others  that  are  waiting  for  admission.  If  it 
can  meet  this  test,  it  should  be  allowed  to  keep  its  place; 
if  not,  it  should  give  way  to  more  serviceable  material. 
. .  ,  A  supplemental  factor  growing  out  of  the 

Text-books  as       .  f         ,.  .        .     ,. 

a  factor  in  influence  of  tradition  is  found  in  the  matter 
determining  of  text-books.  It  is  easy  to  understand  that 

the  curriculum.  •-••••  i          •«  i 

a  subject  that  has  long  been  taught  will  be 
most  likely  to  have  a  well  written  series  of  texts  for  its 
use.  From  generation  to  generation  the  new  text-book 


THE  CURRICULUM  251 

writers  profit  by  the  mistakes  as  well  as  the  successes 
of  their  predecessors,  and  an  excellent  series  of  books  is 
the  result.  Naturally,  this  tends  to  make  the  teaching 
of  such  a  branch  easier  for  the  teacher  and  more  valuable 
for  the  pupil.  New  subjects  in  the  curriculum  must  of 
necessity  be  under  the  handicap  for  a  time  of  relatively 
poorly  organized  material  and  the  lack  of  standardized 
text-books.  This,  of  course,  constitutes  no  reason  for 
keeping  a  subject  out  of  the  curriculum,  since  it  is  only 
by  its  use  that  proper  organization  and  serviceable  texts 
can  evolve;  but  it  illustrates  an  important  factor  tend- 
ing toward  conservation  as  against  change. 

Professionalism  is  the  second  great  factor  going  to 

determine  the  content  of  the  curriculum.    By  profession- 

alism is  meant  the  influence  of  educators 

professionalism   and  teachers.    This  class  is  looked  upon  by 

in  determining    society  as  a  group  of  quasi  experts,  whose 

the  curriculum.          .    ,J  ,       ,    .         ,       ,t  •  i  , 

opinions  and  advice  should  carry  weight. 
And  such  should  be  the  case.  Education  should  be  as 
much  a  profession  as  medicine  or  law,  and  a  teacher's 
advice  upon  an  educational  problem  should  be  as  trust- 
worthy as  a  physician's  upon  a  question  of  medicine  or 
a  lawyer's  upon  a  question  of  law. 

There  are  two  great  reasons  why  such  is  not  now  the 
case.  First,  teachers  and  educators  are  not  strictly  a 
_  .  professional  class  at  all,  because  they  lack 

Teachers  not  .  '  .  J. 

looked  on  as       technical  knowledge   of   society,  culture, 


these  educational  factors.  Secondly,  it  is 
impossible  to  test  the  validity  of  an  educational  theory 
as  easily  and  satisfactorily  as  that  of  a  medical  theory 
or  a  theory  of  jurisprudence,  the  reason  being  that  the 
results  are  so  slow  in  education,  and  that  there  are  so 
many  supplemental  factors  to  be  taken  into  account. 


252         SOCIAL  PRINCIPLES  OF  EDUCATION 

Possibly  it  is  this  very  difficulty  in  the  way  of  accurate 
measurement  of  educational  results  that  makes  so  many 
inexpert  inexpert  critics  ready  to  express  their  edu- 

criticism  cational  convictions.  For  there  is  nothing 

plentiful.  j.naj.  tke  average  man  loves  more  to  do  than 

to  publish  and  defend  his  own  particular  educational 
creed.  It  therefore  comes  about  that  many  who  would 
not  dare  to  show  their  lack  of  information  and  grasp  in  the 
fields  of  science  or  mathematics  by  writing  articles  or 
appearing  hi  public  lectures  in  these  fields,  rush  into  print 
or  readily  proclaim  their  educational  doctrines  with  at 
least  as  little  technical  knowledge  of  the  educational  fac- 
tors as  they  have  of  science  or  mathematics.  This  prob- 
ably explains  why  much  of  the  matter  printed  upon  edu- 
cational theory  is  without  value,  and  no  small  part  of 
it  actually  misleading. 

The  teachers  themselves  have  comparatively  little  to 
say  about  the  curriculum.  It  is  true  that  there  are 
Teachers  say  teachers  here  and  there  who  are  strong 
little  about  enough  to  make  their  views  felt.  By  far 
the  greater  proportion  of  professional  in- 
fluence, however,  is  wielded  by  a  class  coming  to  be  called 
"educators."  Those  of  the  latter  class  most  responsible 
for  the  curriculum  consist,  for  the  greater  part,  of  superin- 
tendents and  principals  in  the  public  schools,  professors 
of  education  and  psychology  in  the  higher  institutions, 
and  the  authorities  having  to  do  with  admission  require- 
ments in  the  colleges  and  universities. 

One  of  the  greatest  professional  influences  at  work 
in  shaping  the  curriculum  in  this  country  during  the 
last  score  of  years  has  been  several  differ- 
the  I^E*  A.  en^  groups  of  educators  acting  as  commit- 
tees appointed  by  the  National  Education 
Association.  Especially  important  was  the  report  of 


THE  CURRICULUM  253 

the  "Committee  of  Ten,"  issued  in  1894.  This  report 
discussed  educational  values  at  great  length,  and  recom- 
mended a  high-school  curriculum  which  received  the 
sanction  of  the  association.  Naturally  this  curriculum 
served,  with  but  slight  modifications,  as  the  type  for 
many  schools,  and  it  has  not  yet  fully  lost  its  dominance. 
Similar  committees  recommended  curriculums  for  ele- 
mentary schools,  both  grade  and  rural,  with  like  results. 
The  Department  of  Superintendence  of  the  National 
Education  Association  is  also  a  powerful  factor  in  public 
education,  and  has  had  much  to  do  in  shaping  the  cur- 
riculum. 

The  most  important  professional  influence  at  work  in 

determining  the  content  of  the  high-school  curriculum  in 

recent  years  has  been  university  and  college 

Influence  of  f  J  & 

college  authorities,  acting  through  the  medium  of 

entrance  tnejr  entrance  requirements.    It  is  naturally 

requirements.  ..  n  ,•* 

the  ambition  of  each  school  of  lower  grade 
to  articulate  with  the  one  next  higher.  Ability  to  do  this 
is  not  only  a  warrant  of  the  standing  of  the  lower  school, 
but  also  encourages  its  graduates  to  continue  their  edu- 
cation in  an  unbroken  line.  It  is  also  to  the  interests  of 
the  higher  institution  to  secure  a  perfect  articulation  of 
the  lower  school  with  itself,  for  it  is  in  this  way  that  it 
secures  students  prepared  for  the  higher  work. 

The  mutual  interests  of  secondary  and  higher  educa- 
tion on  matters  relating  to  the  articulation  of  the  two 
.  .  have  resulted  in  the  forming  of  various 

Associations  .     . 

of  college  associations    of    colleges    and    secondary 

and  secondary     schools,  having  for  their  purpose  the  estab- 

schools.  .       ?       .  , 

hshment  of  criteria  and  methods  of  admis- 
sion of  high-school  graduates  into  the  colleges.  As  a  re- 
sult of  this  co-operative  work,  an  approximately  uniform 


254         SOCIAL  PRINCIPLES  OF  EDUCATION 

standard  of  admissions  for  all  higher  institutions  has  been 
agreed  upon,  and  provision  made  either  for  a  system  of 
accredited  high  schools,  whose  graduates  are  admitted 
to  the  colleges  without  examination,  or  for  a  uniform 
system  of  examinations  for  entrance  into  the  higher  in- 
stitution. In  order  to  accomplish  the  desired  articulation 
of  the  lower  and  the  higher  schools,  it  has  been  necessary 
for  each  to  modify  its  curriculum  in  some  degree  to  meet 
the  other.  In  this,  as  in  other  educational  situations, 
however,  the  influence  of  the  higher  institution  has  proved 
the  stronger,  and  the  high-school  curriculum  has  been 
shaped  largely  in  accordance  with  college  requirements. 

The  departments  and  schools  of  education  in  the  higher 
institutions  are  exerting  an  increasing  professional  in- 
influence  fluence.  This  influence  is  exerted  through 

of  higher  the  membership  of  their  faculties  in  the 

various  educational  associations  already 
discussed;  through  the  publication  of  educational  litera- 
ture; and  even  more  through  shaping  the  educational 
standpoint  of  their  students,  who  are  pursuing  the  study 
of  education  as  a  profession  in  constantly  increasing  num- 
bers, and  who  are  rapidly  coming  to  occupy  the  places  of 
importance  in  educational  affairs. 

Social  standards  and  demands  are  slow  in  making  them- 
selves felt  educationally,  but  they  are  in  the  last  analysis 
influence  of  ^e  ^^  source  of  authority  and  power, 
social  National  ideals  come  at  last  to  be  expressed 

and  conserved  in  the  schools.  There  are 
two  reasons  why  social  ideals  are  comparatively  slow  in 
shaping  the  curriculum:  First,  social  ideals  are  not  al- 
ways clearly  formulated;  they  often  are  but  half  conscious 
to  the  great  mass  of  society  until  some  leader  arises  who, 
by  formulating  the  ideal,  brings  it  to  the  social  conscious- 


THE  CURRICULUM  255 

ness.  And  it  is  evident  that  an  ideal  but  half  felt  and 
dimly  known  cannot  exert  sufficient  compulsion  to  secure 
a  place  in  the  curriculum.  The  second  reason  for  the 
slowness  of  social  ideals  in  modifying  the  curriculum  is 
that  society  does  not  deal  directly  and  at  first  hand  with 
the  schools;  but  rather  through  the  medium  of  a  pro- 
fessional class,  who  are  often  slow  to  interpret  or  respond 
to  a  social  demand. 

It  is  true  that  the  theory  of  our  educational  system 
provides  for  small  local  units,  with  the  social  group  man- 
aging  directly   their   own   school   affairs, 
influence  -^u^  suc^  a  condition  does  not  obtain  in 

not  directly  practice.  In  the  case  of  the  rural  schools, 
education,  ^e  state  superintendent  usually  makes  up 
and  sends  out  a  course  of  study  which  is  to 
all  intents  and  purposes  binding  upon  the  schools.  The 
county  superintendents  insist  upon  the  state  course  being 
followed,  and  the  teachers  natually  obey.  Without  doubt 
this  arrangement  gives  far  better  schools  than  to  depend 
upon  each  school  district  to  arrange  for  its  own  curricu- 
lum; but  the  illustration  shows  how  far  the  people  are 
from  managing  their  schools  directly. 

In  the  grades  of  the  town  and  city  schools  the  course 

has  been  prescribed  largely  by  the  superintendent  and 

his  principals  or  assistants.   That  the  school 

but  indirectly        ,  ,  .    ,        „  .     .  . 

through  board  is  legally  commissioned  with  the  duty 

°f  prescribing  a  course  of  study  is  true;  but 
they,  not  feeling  expert  in  such  matters, 
are  usually  ready  to  sanction  without  modification  what- 
ever curriculum  the  superintendent  proposes. 

The  high-school  curriculum  in  the  United  States  has 
from  its  inception  in  1636  been  largely  under  the  control 
of  the  colleges  and  universities.  The  old  Lathi  grammar 


256         SOCIAL  PRINCIPLES  OF  EDUCATION 

school  was  confessedly  a  college  preparatory  school,  and 

hence  had  its  curriculum  dictated  by  the  college.     The 

next  secondary  school,  the  academy,  arose 

Movement  *  .  '  J.' 

toward  social      as  a  protest  against  the  narrow  curriculum 
t?0?0}  £  ^e      °f  tne  grammar  school,  but  the  academy 

United  States. 

also  soon  fell  under  the  sway  of  the  col- 
lege and  became  a  preparatory  school.  In  the  high 
school,  the  "people's  college,"  it  was  thought  that  so- 
ciety would  have  an  institution  that  would  respond  im- 
mediately to  the  needs  and  ideals  of  the  people.  But 
after  half  or  three-quarters  of  a  century  of  existence  the 
high  schools,  as  has  already  been  shown,  find  themselves 
very  largely  college  preparatory  schools.  Many  of  the 
middle-sized  and  smaller  ones  are  straining  every  nerve 
to  meet  the  college  requirements,  even  to  the  neglect 
of  some  of  the  most  fundamental  branches.  The  college, 
being  still  further  removed  from  immediate  contact  with 
social  demands,  has  maintained  a  curriculum  that  has 
been  dictated  very  completely  by  tradition  and  profes- 
sional influence. 

The  ultimate  source  of  authority  in  determining  the 
content  of  the  curriculum  must  lie  in  the  needs  and  de- 
„  .  .  mands  of  society.  What  the  social  proc- 

Cumculum  .  J 

must  respond      ess  requires  the  curriculum  must  contain, 
to  social  When  society  outlives  old  ideals  and  enters 

demand.  ....  .  . 

upon  new  lines  of  experience,  the  curriculum 
must  change  in  conformity  with  the  new  conditions.  In 
all  progressive  societies,  therefore,  the  curriculum  will 
be  in  a  constant  state  of  reconstruction.  If  the  curricu- 
lum proves  unable  to  make  this  readjustment  in  accord- 
ance with  changing  social  demands,  and  continues  in 
traditional  but  outgrown  lines,  it  obstructs  instead  of 
furthering  social  progress.  It  is  not  meant  by  this  that 


THE  CURRICULUM  257 

the  curriculum  will  consist  of  new  and  different  subject- 
matter  for  each  successive  generation.  On  the  contrary 
the  basis  of  the  curriculum  will  always  be  old  and  tried 
matter.  This  must  needs  be  the  case,  for  social  changes 
work  out  slowly,  retaining  a  large  measure  of  the  old 
in  what  seems  to  be  new;  and  the  curriculum  always 
is  conservative,  lagging  far  behind  the  front  in  a  social 
movement. 

While  the  social  demand  is  to  be  the  source  of  authority 
in  determining  the  curriculum,  this  does  not  imply  that 
.  professional  influence  should  have  no  place, 

factor  to  On  the  contrary,  educators  and  teachers 

be  responsive  should  have  far  more  educational  influence 
than  they  now  possess.  They  should  come 
to  be  looked  upon  by  society  as  true  leaders  in  education; 
as  experts  whose  word  possesses  the  weight  of  authority. 
But  their  leadership  must  not  be  exerted  from  a  point 
outside  the  social  process.  They  must  clearly  interpret 
and  formulate  the  social  ideal,  thereby  bringing  it  fully 
to  the  consciousness  of  society  as  the  educational  aim. 
If  educational  leadership  thus  takes  its  cue  from  social 
conditions  and  needs,  there  can  then  be  no  conflict  be- 
tween the  professional  and  the  social  ideal,  as  is  now 
often  the  case.  More  than  this,  the  professional  educa- 
tor should  himself  be  an  active  participant  in  the  social 
activities  of  his  day,  that  he  may  have  an  effective  part 
in  shaping  the  ideals  which  he  is  to  carry  out  in  the 
curriculum  and  the  school. 
_  . ,  The  selection  of  studies  within  an  elec- 

Problem  .  .  . 

of  selecting  tive  curriculum  becomes  in  the  higher  phases 
studies  within  of  education  hardly  less  of  a  problem  than 

curriculum. 

the  selection  of  the  curriculum.    With  from 
two  to  five  times  as  much  material  as  the  child  can  study 


258         SOCIAL  PRINCIPLES  OF  EDUCATION 

in  the  high  school,  and  from  four  to  ten  times  as  much 
as  he  can  study  in  the  college,  the  matter  of  selection 
of  studies  becomes  one  of  moment. 

Too  often  the  choice  of  studies  depends  on  trivial  or 
accidental  considerations.  The  parents  form  a  notion 
Choice  often.  ^a^  ^ne  son  must  have  a  classical  education 
depends  on  or  the  daughter  a  scientific  education  with- 
triviai  factors.  Qut  aQy  consideration  of  the  aptitudes  of  the 
child  or  the  use  to  which  such  knowledge  is  to  be  put. 
Often  the  advice  of  older  schoolmates  who  have  liked  or 
failed  to  like  certain  branches  is  a  determining  factor. 
The  personal  equation  of  the  teacher  is  also  one  of  the 
most  potent  influences  in  determining  the  studies  elected. 
In  general  there  is  probably  too  much  of  whim  and  too 
little  consideration  of  educational  values  in  the  selection 
of  subjects. 

The  election  of  studies  within  the  curriculum  should 
rest  on  two  broad  principles:  (i)  the  importance  of  the 
Two  principles  subjects  as  a  part  of  human  culture,  and 
for  selection  particularly  their  relation  to  the  social 
of  studies.  process  in  which  the  child  is  a  participant; 
and  (2)  the  adaptability  of  the  individual's  powers  and 
capacities  to  pursue  certain  lines  of  study  and  secure 
development  from  them. 

As  an  illustration  of  the  first  principle,  it  would  seem 
that  their  importance  in  the  evolution  of  civilization  and 
Application  ^  ^e  social  activities  of  the  present  would 
of  first  demand  that  the  child  should  have  some 

pnncipe.  touch  with  each  of  certain  great  fields  of 

culture.  Among  these  are  such  groups  as  the  social 
sciences;  the  material  sciences;  language,  especially  the 
mother  tongue;  art  and  literature;  the  manual  arts; 
religion  and  ethics.  The  particular  phase  of  the  fields 


THE  CURRICULUM  259 

presented  will  depend  upon  the  application  of  the  second 
principle,  and  will,  of  course,  involve  the  question  of  the 
age  and  advancement  of  the  individual. 

With  reference  to  the  second  principle,  it  is  to  be 
expected  that,  since  the  curriculum  uses  so  small  a  por- 
Appiication  ^on  °^  numan  culture,  not  all  individuals 
of  second  will  possess  just  the  powers  and  capacities 

principle.  ^^  suited  for  mastery  of  the  particular 

phase  of  culture  presented  in  the  curriculum.  On  the 
other  hand,  an  individual  may  possess  many  excellent 
powers  and  capacities  not  demanded  by  the  curriculum. 
It  is  evident,  therefore,  that  a  child's  response  to  a  cur- 
riculum is  not  a  sure  test  of  all  his  abilities,  but  only  of 
those  that  specifically  apply  to  the  curriculum  offered. 

It  is  often  the  case,  however,  that  some  accident  or 
notion  turns  a  child  against  a  certain  line  of  study  which, 
if  pursued  under  other  conditions,  could 
capacity  easily  be  mastered.    Thoughtless  criticism 

includes  ail        of  a  study  by  older  people,  the  tradition 
4113  °f  *ke  particular  school  concerned  upon 


this  branch,  poor  teaching,  attempting  the 
subject  too  early  or  before  sufficiently  prepared  —  these 
are  some  of  the  things  that  may  handicap  a  child  in  a 
line  of  study  in  which  he  might  ultimately  come  to  excel. 
It  is  safe  to  assume  at  the  beginning  that  every  normal 
individual  has  capacity  for,  and  will  develop  an  interest 
in,  all  the  lines  of  study  which  are  fundamental  to  the 
race's  progress;  and  only  after  the  most  earnest  attempts 
at  mastery  under  favorable  conditions  should  it  be  con- 
cluded that  the  failure  to  grasp  a  subject  is  because  of  a 
lack  in  the  requisite  capacity  for  such  study. 

In  response  to  the  growing  concept  of  social  efficiency 
instead  of  mental  discipline  as  the  aim  of  education, 


260         SOCIAL  PRINCIPLES  OF  EDUCATION 

the  content  of  the  present-day  curriculum  has  been 
undergoing  marked  changes  during  the  last  generation. 
These  changes  have  been  effected  in  two 
changes  in  ways:  First,  by  the  modification  of  the  sub- 
content  of  ject-matter  within  certain  branches;  and, 

curriculum. 

second,  by  the  addition  of  new  branches 
of  study.  As  illustrations  of  the  first  type  of  change  may 
be  mentioned  the  new  content  that  has  been  given  to 
geography,  language,  physiology,  and  in  less  degree, 
arithmetic.  Among  the  additions  to  the  curriculum  are 
commercial  branches,  the  handicrafts,  music,  and  art. 
It  is  fair  to  say  that  the  entire  curriculum  has  felt  the 
vitalizing  influence  of  the  social  aim  in  education,  both 
in  its  content  and  in  its  organization. 

Significant  as  these  changes  have  been,  however,  we 
are  obliged  to  concede  that  even  if  the  disciplinary  con- 
cept is  losing  ground,  it  still  exercises  the 

Disciplinary  '...,?  .       ,  T 

concept  yet         dominating  influence  in  the  curriculum.    It 
rules  in  js  responsible  for  at  least  half  of  the  subject- 

curnculum.  .  J  , 

matter  given  in  the  grades,  and  probably 
for  more  than  half  of  what  is  given  in  the  high  school. 
Consider,  for  example,  the  arithmetic  taught  in  the 
grades.  First,  the  amount  of  it;  a  large  majority  of  our 
schools  begin  training  in  number  in  the  first  school  year 
and  continue  for  the  eight  years  of  the  elementary  school. 
This  is  supplemented  by  at  least  three  years  of  additional 
training  in  mathematics  in  the  high  school.  Almost  one- 
fourth  of  the  time  and  energy  given  to  education  is  thus 
spent  in  developing  the  concept  of  number.  Of  course, 
the  mere  numbering  of  the  objects  or  items  of  our  ex- 
perience does  not  possess  any  such  relative  importance 
as  this  proportion  would  indicate.  The  only  explanation 
is  to  be  found  in  the  theory  of  mental  discipline. 


THE  CURRICULUM  261 

Much  has  been  done  recently  to  bring  the  subject- 
matter  of  arithmetic  closer  to  the  experience  of  the  child, 
Arithmetic  yet  yet  the  greater  part  of  our  texts  is  still 
taught  as  made  up  of  problems  of  difficult  analysis 

rarely  or  never  met  with  in  the  actual  con- 
ditions of  life.  So  clearly  is  this  type  of  subject-matter 
calculated  to  result  in  discipline  instead  of  efficiency,  that 
a  large  majority  of  those  who  have  studied  mathematics 
for  eleven  or  twelve  years  are  without  the  power  to  add, 
multiply,  divide,  and  subtract  simple  numbers  with 
speed  and  accuracy.  The  summing  up  of  a  month's 
household  expenses,  or  the  computation  of  a  bill  of  lum- 
ber, would  severely  test  the  skill  of  many  intelligent  boys 
and  girls  who  have  spent  from  eight  to  twelve  years  under 
the  "discipline"  of  mathematics. 

The  amount  of  time  devoted  to  arithmetic  in  the  ele- 
mentary school  could  probably  be  reduced  one-half  not 
Desirable  on^y  without  any  loss  in  efficiency  in  num- 

changes  in  ber,  but  with  an  actual  gam.  The  change 
would  contemplate  the  elimination  of  those 
parts  of  the  subject  whose  value  is  intended  to  be  chiefly 
or  wholly  disciplinary,  and  the  placing  of  greater  empha- 
sis on  the  phases  relating  to  home  and  business  activi- 
ties. This  would  necessitate  dropping  out  a  large  pro- 
portion of  the  problems  in  the  complicated  forms  of  analy- 
sis, combinations  of  compound  and  complex  fractions, 
simple  fractions  with  large  or  irreducible  denominators 
such  as  are  never  met  with  hi  business  life,  various  sec- 
tions of  measurements  involving  technical  tables  and 
measures,  many  parts  of  percentage  not  hi  practical  use 
in  the  business  world,  the  most  of  proportion,  and  nearly 
all  of  square  and  cube  root. 

The  arithmetic  taught  would  then  consist  of  much 


262         SOCIAL  PRINCIPLES  OF  EDUCATION 

practice  in  the  fundamental  operations,  seeking  for  both 
accuracy  and  speed;  the  common  problems  that  have  to 
g^-jj  do  with  the  household,  the  shop,  or  the 

content  of  farm,  correlating  these  especially  with  the 
arithmetic.  other  work  of  the  school;  common  and 
decimal  fractions  of  the  denominations  usually  met  in 
business  computations;  the  elements  of  percentage  as 
employed  in  interest  and  the  discounts;  and  the  compu- 
tation of  the  common  business  forms,  such  as  bills,  checks, 
and  drafts,  and  whatever  else  enters  into  the  business 
routine  of  the  modern  home. 

A  criticism  similar  to  that  of  arithmetic  may  be  ap- 
plied to  the  subject  of  grammar  as  taught  in  many 
Grammar  also  elementary  schools.  Much  has  been  done 
taught  as  in  recent  years  to  emphasize  the  expres- 

Uscipiine.  gjon  sj(je  Qf  ^g^gg  as  against  its  ana- 
lytical aspect.  A  great  deal  of  technical  grammar  is, 
however,  yet  given  those  of  tender  years.  This  mode 
of  approach  to  language  violates  the  natural  order  of 
learning,  failing  to  make  the  best  use  of  the  impulses  of 
imitation  and  expression,  which  are  at  their  height  in 
childhood,  and  which  constitute  the  best  basis  for  the 
attainment  of  facility  and  accuracy  in  speech.  Gram- 
mar is  logic  of  a  rigid  type,  and,  except  for  the  simpler 
grammatical  relations,  has  no  place  in  the  elementary 
school.  Its  position  there  can  be  defended  only  from 
the  disciplinary  standpoint,  and  it  is  so  far  beyond  the 
grasp  of  the  pupils  of  this  age  as  to  fail  of  whatever 
might  be  claimed  for  it  on  this  ground  if  presented  at  a 
later  stage  of  development. 

The  loss  of  time  in  the  study  of  language  in  the  ele- 
mentary school  is  probably  nearly  as  great  as  it  is  in 
the  study  of  arithmetic.  Much  effort  has  been  given 


THE  CURRICULUM  263 

to  teaching  the  correct  forms  of  speech  at  a  time  when 
vital  content  is  lacking.  Facility  in  expression  cannot 
Educational  ^e  secured  when  there  is  nothing  to  ex- 
waste  in  press.  When  the  child  enters  school  the 

language  impulse  is  strong,  and  further  de- 
velopment in  language  depends  far  more  on  the  acquisi- 
tion of  new  ideas  and  the  development  of  new  interests 
than  on  instruction  in  language  forms.  The  child  is 
ready  enough  to  express  his  thought  when  he  has  in- 
teresting, vital  thought  to  express;  and  no  amount  of 
training  can  result  in  language  ability  without  this  sub- 
jective demand  for  expression.  Expression  cannot  be 
divorced  from  experience. 

The  immediate  activities  of  the  child,  therefore,  both 
in  and  out  of  the  school,  are  the  basis  of  all  elementary 

language  training,  and  suggest  the  content 

Experience  °  , 

the  basis  of  of  the  language  course  for  the  elementary 
language  school.  The  handicrafts,  nature  study, 

training.  .  .  . 

play,  literature  in  story  form,  and  biog- 
raphy all  supply  material  for  language  content,  provid- 
ing they  call  forth  a  real  response  that  demands  expres- 
sion on  the  part  of  the  child. 

In  the  development  of  the  individual  as  well  as  in  that 
of  the  race,  spoken  language  precedes  written.    The 

tongue  is  better  adapted  to  speech  than 

Spoken 

language  the  hand,  hence  written  forms  of  expression 

precedes  must  be  an  outgrowth  from  oral  forms. 

written* 

The  first  several  years  of  language  work 
should  therefore  be  chiefly  oral,  antf  oral  work  should 
predominate  over  written  work  well  toward  the  end  of 
the  elementary  school  course,  if  indeed  not  all  the  way 
through.  There  is  grave  doubt  whether  language  should 
be  differentiated  as  a  separate  study  with  its  own  text- 


264         SOCIAL  PRINCIPLES  OF  EDUCATION 

book  earlier  than  the  seventh  grade,  although  no  doubt 
it  should  have  a  distinct  place  in  the  programme  earlier 
than  this.  During  the  last  two  years  of  the  elementary 
school  course,  the  forms  of  oral  and  written  composition 
may  well  be  studied  from  a  text,  and  the  simpler  rela- 
tions of  words  in  the  sentence  mastered.  But  here  as  in 
the  beginning  the  language  content  must  relate  itself  to 
the  experience  of  the  individual. 

The  content  of  geography  has  also  undergone  great 
changes  under  the  stimulus  of  the  social  ideal.  Traces 
of  the  old  catechetical  method  are  still  to 
geography.  ^e  f°und  nevertheless,  and  many  children 
are  yet  committing  to  memory  the  defini- 
tions of  geographical  terms,  when  the  real  objects  are 
lying  ready  at  hand  for  study.  The  names  of  many 
bays,  rivers,  gulfs,  straits,  and  towns  are  learned  and 
recited,  never  again  to  enter  into  the  experience,  while 
the  natural  environment  of  the  child,  the  earth  as  it 
touches  his  own  life,  is  but  a  dim  reality. 

The  subject  of  geography  should  lie  very  close  to  the 
experience  of  the  child.  It  begins  wherever  his  life 
Social  touches  nature  in  his  environment.  It 

basis  of  deals  with  the  earth  not  as  a  ball  of  mat- 

ter revolving  around  the  sun,  nor  even  as 
the  home  of  man,  but  as  the  home  of  himself  and  those 
whom  he  knows.  The  content  of  geography  is  there- 
fore synonymous  with  the  content  of  the  experience  of 
the  child  as  related  to  his  own  interests  and  activities 
in  so  far  as  they  grow  out  of  the  earth  as  his  home. 
Towns  and  cities  begin  with  the  ones  nearest  at  hand. 
The  concept  of  rivers  has  its  rise  in  the  stream  that 
flows  past  the  child's  home.  Valleys,  mountains,  capes, 
and  bays  are  but  modifications  of  those  that  lie  within 


THE  CURRICULUM  265 

the  circle  of  personal  experience.  Generalizations  must 
come  to  be  made,  but  they  must  rest  upon  concrete 
and  particular  instances  if  they  are  to  constitute  a  real- 
ity to  the  learner.  The  earth  must  finally  be  conceived 
as  the  home  of  man,  but  it  is  first  conceived  as  the 
home  of  particular  men. 

The  earth  as  the  home  of  real  people,  engaged  in  real 
activities,  gives  the  cue  for  the  content  of  geography. 
What  kind  of  people  live  in  a  country,  what  they  work 
at,  what  they  eat,  and  how  they  live  in  their  homes  and 
their  schools,  what  weather  they  have,  and  what  they 
wear,  how  they  travel,  and  speak,  and  read — these  are 
more  vital  questions  to  the  child  than  the  names  and 
locations  of  unimportant  streams,  towns,  capes,  and 
bays.  For  they  are  the  things  that  touch  his  own  ex- 
perience, and  hence  appeal  to  his  interest.  Only  as  geog- 
raphy is  given  this  social  background,  and  concerns  it- 
self with  the  earth  as  related  to  social  activities,  can  it 
fulfil  its  function  in  the  elementary  school. 

Few  subjects  have  been  more  misused  in  the  element- 
ary curriculum  than  physiology.  It  began  with  a  mixt- 
Recent  ure  °^  medical  anatomy  and  advanced 

changes  in  physiology,  to  which  were  added  a  few 
suggestions  on  hygiene.  Later  a  large 
amount  of  <?M<m'-scientific  matter  was  added  on  the  ef- 
fects of  narcotics  and  stimulants.  Nearly  all  of  this 
matter  was  beyond  the  comprehension  of  the  child,  or 
else  outside  his  interests  and  unrelated  to  his  experi- 
ence. Much  of  such  content  has  now  been  dropped  out, 
and  matter  introduced  bearing  upon  the  conditions  of 
right  living  and  the  relation  of  health  to  physical  and 
mental  efficiency. 

Further  reform  is  still  needed,  however,  in  the  con- 


266         SOCIAL  PRINCIPLES  OF  EDUCATION 

tent  of  physiology  as  an  elementary  school  subject. 
The  child  is  at  this  age  not  only  in  the  most  critical 
Social  content  stage  of  development,  but  he  is  also  form- 
to  be  further  ing  his  personal  habits  as  to  the  care  and 
developed.  uge  Q£  ^  fofiy  jt  js>  therefore,  important 

that  he  should  learn  and  come  to  practice  the  element- 
ary rules  of  hygienic  living.  He  should  be  taught  the 
importance  of  pure  air,  and  the  ways  by  which  it  can 
be  secured;  the  necessity  for  exercise,  and  also  for  rest; 
how  to  secure  the  best  conditions  for  sleep;  the  neces- 
sity for  cleanliness,  and  the  way  to  bathe  and  care  for 
the  body;  proper  foods,  their  preparation,  care,  and 
manner  of  eating;  the  care  of  the  eyes,  mouth  and  nose; 
the  simpler  facts  of  sex  and  its  hygiene;  and  the  treat- 
ment of  cuts,  bruises  and  burns.  Not  only  are  these  and 
similar  topics  adapted  to  the  child's  interest  and  under- 
standing, but  they  have  a  vital  bearing  upon  individual 
and  social  efficiency. 

The  handicrafts  are  a  comparatively  recent  addition 
to  the  curriculum,  and  hence  have  been  less  subject  to 

the  disciplinary  aim  than  the  older  sub- 
handicrafts,  jects.  Indeed  they  owe  their  introduction 

into  the  curriculum  largely  to  the  rise  of 
the  social  concept  of  education.  The  handicrafts  now 
constitute  one  of  the  most  important  and  valuable  of 
the  elementary-school  subjects.  At  this  stage  of  the 
child's  development  the  impulse  to  activity  is  very 
strong,  and  the  time  is  ripe  for  securing  muscular  co- 
ordination and  control.  The  manual  activities  not  only 
aid  greatly  hi  this  development  of  the  individual,  but 
they  also  connect  very  directly  with  the  child's  life  out- 
side the  school,  and  thus  serve  to  articulate  the  activi- 
ties of  the  school  with  the  wider  social  activities  of  the 


THE  CURRICULUM  267 

home  and  the  community.     It  is  hard  to  estimate  the 
great  socializing  effect  of  this  influence. 

Music  is  also  one  of  the  later  subjects  of  the  curricu- 
lum. It  not  only  ministers  to  a  natural  impulse  of  the 
„  .  individual,  but  develops  one  of  the  most 

Music. 

important  aspects  of  his  nature  as  relates 
to  social  participation.  Almost  every  normal  child  can 
be  easily  taught  to  sing,  and  all  can  be  led  to  enjoy  and 
appreciate  music.  It  is  not  the  function  of  the  school 
to  develop  musical  artists,  but  to  lay  the  foundation  of 
interest,  knowledge,  and  skill  necessary  to  the  enjoyment 
of  music  by  all. 

Art  is  at  present  winning  its  way  into  the  curriculum. 
A  generation  ago  it  was  a  pedagogical  crime  for  a  child 
to  take  time  from  his  lessons  to  draw  a 
picture  in  school.  Drawing,  painting,  and 
modelling  are  now  an  integral  part  of  the  curriculum  of 
many  schools.  Here  again  the  social  has  triumphed  over 
the  disciplinary  aim  in  securing  a  place  for  a  vital  sub- 
ject. The  aesthetic  instinct  is  strong  in  childhood,  and 
hence  this  is  the  tune  to  shape  the  artistic  tastes  and 
standards.  Just  as  in  music,  it  is  not  the  purpose  of  the 
school  to  produce  finished  artists,  but  rather  to  use  art 
as  a  medium  of  expression  for  the  child,  and  to  culti- 
vate through  a  study  of  pictures,  statuary,  architecture, 
and  other  forms  of  art,  an  appreciation  for  the  beautiful. 
The  secondary  school  curriculum  has  from  the  begin- 
ning been  shaped  largely  in  accordance  with  college  re- 
_.  .  ,.  quirements,  and  has  therefore  been  domi- 

Disciphnary  . 

concept  in          nated  by  the  disciplinary  concept.     Its  re- 
high-school         cent  broadening  through  the  addition  either 

curriculum.  ° . 

of  elective  subjects,  or  elective  parallel 
courses  has  resulted  from  the  public  demand  for  sub- 


268         SOCIAL  PRINCIPLES  OF  EDUCATION 

jects  having  a  more  direct  bearing  on  the  social  activi- 
ties. Although  so  high  professional  authority  as  the 
National  Education  Association  once  declared  that  the 
college  preparatory  course  is  the  most  fruitful  even  for 
pupils  not  going  to  college,  the  social  mind  has  remained 
unconvinced,  and  the  changes  in  the  curriculum  have 
gone  on. 

The  high  schools  that  have  found  it  possible  to  add  sub- 
jects or  parallel  courses  to  their  curriculum  have  thereby 
reduced  the  proportion  of  purely  discipli- 

Situation  in  «•        j      • 

high  schools.  nary  matter  offered,  since  the  greater  part 
of  the  additions  have  been  of  other  than  dis- 
ciplinary character.  All  such  schools  still  maintain,  how- 
ever, the  college  preparatory  course,  and  tradition,  added 
to  the  prestige  of  admitting  its  graduates  to  college,  goes 
to  place  this  course  at  an  advantage  as  compared  with 
other  courses  of  the  curriculum.  The  large  number  of 
somewhat  smaller  high  schools  not  able  to  maintain  more 
than  one  course,  but  still  desirous  of  meeting  college  re- 
quirements, both  for  their  own  reputation  and  for  the 
advantage  of  those  of  their  graduates  who  enter  college, 
offer  only  the  traditional  curriculum.  All  students  in 
these  high  schools  are,  of  course,  obliged  to  take  the 
studies  offered  whether  they  are  preparing  for  college  or 
not.  Below  this  group  is  yet  another  large  group  of 
still  smaller  high  schools  not  able  to  offer  more  than 
three,  or  even  two,  years  of  the  four-year  course.  Most 
of  these  schools  are  following  out  the  traditional  curricu- 
lum of  the  college  entrance  requirements  as  far  as  their 
work  extends.  It  is  seen  from  these  facts  that  a  very 
large  proportion  of  the  high-school  pupils  of  the  coun- 
try are  still  to  be  found  in  the  traditional  curriculum  of 
college  preparatory  studies. 


THE  CURRICULUM  269 

That  the  college  preparatory  course  contains  a  large 
preponderance  of  disciplinary  matter  is  evident  from  an 
College  analysis  of  its  content.  The  standard 

entrance  amount  of  high-school  work  required  by 

lt8'  most  of  the  higher  institutions  of  the  coun- 
try is  thirty  semester  units  of  acceptable  subjects.  Less 
uniformity  exists  as  to  the  nature  of  subjects  required, 
but  still  the  divergence  is  not  great  from  the  following 
requirements  for  entrance  into  the  arts  course: 

Latin  or  Greek,     ...  8  Geometry,     ...  3 

German  or  French,    .     .  4  Material  science,     .  2 

English, 6  Social  science,    .     .  2 

Algebra, 3  Elective,  ....  2 

The  requirements  for  the  science  course  do  not  differ 
essentially  except  in  the  requirement  of  but  eight  units 
of  foreign  language  instead  of  twelve.  It  should  be  said, 
however,  that  the  present  tendency  is  toward  greater  leni- 
ency in  the  nature  of  the  subjects  offered  for  admission. 
But  it  is  seen  that  the  high-school  pupil  who  follows 
out  the  course  just  outlined  will  have  twenty-four  out 
of  thirty  credits  in  what  may  be  called 
proportion  of  formal  subjects.  For  the  first  four  years 
of  Latm  or  Greek  must  be  spent  chiefly  in 
the  mastery  of  the  mechanism  of  the  lan- 
guage and  very  little  of  social  content  is  possible.  The 
spirit  of  Greek  and  Roman  social  life  can  be  but  dimly 
felt  through  the  difficult  medium  of  declensions,  conjuga- 
tions, syntax,  and  lexicons.  The  first  two  years  of  Ger- 
man or  French  must  likewise  be  devoted  to  the  mastery 
of  the  form  of  the  language,  and  little  of  the  literary 
or  social  phase  is  possible.  The  content  of  the  three 
years'  work  in  English  can  be  greatly  modified  according 


270         SOCIAL  PRINCIPLES  OF  EDUCATION 

to  the  standpoint  of  the  teacher,  but  probably  at  least 
half  of  the  time  is  devoted  to  the  linguistic  phase  of 
the  study  as  distinct  from  the  literary.  Practically  all  of 
algebra,  and  a  large  proportion  of  geometry,  is  of  neces- 
sity purely  formal,  dealing  with  the  numbering  of  things, 
but  not  with  things  themselves. 

We  find,  therefore,  approximately  three-fourths  of  the 
high-school  course  of  this  type  consisting  of  formal  sub- 
ject-matter.    To   this    amount    we    must 

Material  and  ......  .  . 

social  science  make  some  addition  from  the  material  and 
taught  as  social  sciences  growing  out  of  the  nature  of 

discipline.  >  . 

their  teaching.  For  example,  physics  is 
quite  generally  presented  from  the  mathematical  and 
abstract  standpoint,  instead  of  approaching  the  subject 
from  the  point  of  view  of  its  relations  to  life  and  experi- 
ence. Botany  is  often  taught  as  the  analysis  and  classi- 
fication of  plants,  and  little  related  to  the  actual  experi- 
ence of  the  pupil.  The  same  is  true  in  some  degree  of 
chemistry,  physiology,  and  the  earth  sciences.  And  his- 
tory has  not  infrequently  been  little  more  than  a  skel- 
eton of  events  and  military  achievements,  and  hence 
failed  to  enter  into  the  life  and  spirit  of  society. 

It  is  not  meant  to  imply  in  this  connection  that  the 
formal  studies  of  the  high-school  curriculum  are  without 

value  as  educational  material.     The  point 

Value  of  ,  *, 

traditional  is  rather  that  the  content  of  such  subjects 
curriculum  js  not  a  socjai  content,  and  that  it  does  not 

not  social.  ......  . 

therefore  relate  itself  directly  to  social  ac- 
tivities. The  values  contained  hi  the  traditional  curric- 
ulum, whatever  else  they  may  be,  are  not  primarily  so- 
cial values.  And  the  aim  attained  by  such  subjects  must 
be  stated  in  terms  of  mental  discipline  rather  than  social 
efficiency. 


'THE  CURRICULUM  271 

The  problem  therefore  arises  as  to  how  far  the  pres- 
ent curriculum  enables  the  high  school  to  fulfil  its  aim. 
What  is  the  aim  of  the  high  school?    Is  it 
high  school         that  of  "disciplining  the  faculties"  of  its 
fulfilling  its        pupils,  or  of  developing  them  in  social  effi- 

function?  •  -v      m        i  i  • 

ciency?  Should  it  seek  to  prepare  the  few 
for  college,  or  to  fit  the  many  for  the  more  immediate 
social  activities  in  which  they  shall  engage? 

It  is  very  necessary  that  we  should  have  schools  pre- 
paring for  college,  and  that  these  schools  should  be 
easily  accessible  for  all  the  people.  It  is  f ur- 
tner  desirable  that  the  college  and  the  pre- 
paratory school  shall  perfectly  articulate,  so 
that  it  may  be  as  easy  and  natural  as  possible  to  pass 
from  the  high  school  to  the  college.  On  the  other  hand, 
of  all  the  pupils  enrolled  in  the  high  school  at  any  one 
time,  less  than  forty  per  cent  graduate.  Of  those  that 
graduate,  a  small  proportion  go  to  college.  A  very  small 
minority,  therefore,  of  the  high-school  pupils  are  prepar- 
ing for  college.  Unless  the  college  preparatory  course 
offers  the  best  type  of  training  for  all,  it  would  seem  un- 
just to  require  the  large  proportion  who  will  go  no  fur- 
ther than  the  high  school  to  take  this  course. 

The  boys  who  close  their  schooling  with  the  high  school 
are  looking  toward  a  career  as  merchant,  farmer,  ac- 
_  .  .  countant,  mechanic,  or  in  some  other  such 

Preparing  for  . 

immediate          vocation;  the  girls  are  to  become  teachers, 
so"af,  clerks,  and  stenographers,  or  housewives. 

activities. 

Besides  the  vocational  relations,  each  will 
function  as  a  member  of  a  family,  a  community,  a  church, 
as  a  citizen  of  a  state,  and  in  other  social  capacities.  All 
must,  through  their  education,  be  fitted  into  these  so- 
cial activities,  with  their  powers  so  developed  that  they 


272         SOCIAL  PRINCIPLES  OF  EDUCATION 

may  themselves  attain  to  the  fullest  possible  experience 
and  make  the  largest  contribution  to  society.  In  other 
words,  the  outcome  of  their  education  must  be  social 
efficiency. 

It  may  well  be  doubted  whether,  for  example,  the 
mathematical  training  received  in  the  high  school  re- 
sults in  greater  efficiency  in  any  of  these 
lines-  Certainly  it  has  no  more  bearing 
than  the  same  amount  of  training  from 
geology,  music,  or  drawing,  for  the  content  of  the  high- 
school  branches  of  mathematics  has  no  relation  to  the 
non-technical  social  activities.  Algebraic  formulae  are 
learned,  but  they  are  not  applied  to  the  problems  of  the 
farm,  the  home  or  the  shop.  The  solution  of  a  triangle 
is  mastered,  but  the  method  is  not  employed  in  comput- 
ing the  slope  of  a  roof,  the  strain  on  a  girder,  or  the 
excavation  of  a  basement. 

Similarly,  the  relation  of  the  study  of  Latin  to  social 
efficiency  may  be  questioned.  Its  effect  in  producing 
facility  in  the  use  of  English  is  urged,  but 
one  is  justified  in  questioning  whether  the 
same  amount  of  time  spent  on  the  study  of  English  it- 
self would  not  yield  far  greater  returns.  The  socializing 
influence  of  contact  with  Roman  civilization  is  also  pre- 
sented in  defence  of  Latin;  but  the  spirit  of  Roman 
civilization  can  be  approached  far  more  easily  and  effec- 
tively than  through  the  medium  of  a  language  so  diffi- 
cult that  the  student  cannot  read  it  after  four  years  of 
study  Says  Emerson,  "I  should  as  soon  think  of  swim- 
ming across  the  Charles  River  when  I  wish  to  go  to 
Boston  as  of  reading  all  my  books  in  the  original  when 
I  have  them  rendered  for  me  in  my  mother  tongue." 
Latin,  like  mathematics,  must  finally  come  back  to 


THE  CURRICULUM  275 

formal  discipline  for  its  defence  as  a  part  of  the  hijj-y 
school  curriculum,  at  least  for  those  who  are  not  going 
on  into  higher  education. 

The  same  criticism  may,  of  course,  be  made  on  Ger- 
man or  French  when  pursued  but  two  years,  as  is  usually 
the  case.    The  pupil  gets  only  a  knowledge 
languages.          °^  grammar  and  the  ability  to  read  halt- 
ingly the  easiest  matter.    He  has  read  no 
literature  of  value,  and  is  able  to  read  none.    He  therefore 
carries  with  him  only  the  mental  effects  of  his  study,  for 
it  possesses  no  social  content. 

English,  which  offers  so  rich  a  social  content,  may 
be  so  taught  as  to  result  chiefly  in  discipline.  It  may 
well  be  questioned  whether  English  has 
not  taken  its  method  too  largely  from 
the  method  of  the  foreign  languages,  and  been  overbur- 
dened with  grammar.  The  relation  between  ability  in 
grammatical  analysis  and  readiness  and  facility  in  the 
use  of  speech  has  not  yet  been  established.  And  even 
in  the  teaching  of  literature,  it  is  possible  to  make  the 
formal  aspect  overshadow  the  content  to  such  an  extent 
that  the  human  interest  is  lost.  It  is  a  fact  greatly  to 
be  regretted  that  the  high-school  course  in  English  has 
so  little  influence  in  molding  the  taste  of  the  pupils  in 
their  reading,  and  leading  them  to  a  love  of  literature. 
Here  again  the  social  opportunity  is  often  lost  through 
aiming  primarily  at  discipline  instead  of  efficiency. 

The  high-school  curriculum  is  at  present  undergoing 
some  significant  changes.  A  growing  tendency  exists  to 
Changes  in  emphasize  phases  of  subject-matter  more 
high-school  directly  related  to  the  life  and  occupations 
of  the  people.  The  first  of  the  subjects  to 
feel  the  effects  of  this  movement  have  been  the  ancient 


274         SOCIAL  PRINCIPLES  OF  EDUCATION 

languages.  Greek  has  almost  passed  away  as  a  high- 
school  branch,  and  the  recent  trend  is  similarly  away 
from  Latin,  and  toward  scientific,  industrial,  and  com- 
mercial lines.  Algebra  and  geometry  have  not  yet  been 
affected  by  the  changes  going  on,  and  will,  no  doubt, 
hold  their  present  position  for  a  considerable  time.  The 
material  and  the  social  sciences  are  being  greatly  revi- 
talized both  hi  the  content  and  method  through  em- 
phasizing those  aspects  of  the  subjects  that  bear  most 
directly  on  concrete  social  interests  and  problems.  In- 
deed, every  phase  of  the  curriculum,  whatever  its  con- 
tent, is  in  some  degree  responding  to  the  new  social  de- 
mands being  placed  upon  education. 

One  effect  of  these  changes  in  the  high-school  curric- 
ulum will  be  to  increase  public  interest  in  this  phase  of 
education,  and  hence  ultimately  to  result 

Effects  of  .  •     . 

these  social-  in  a  larger  proportion  of  our  population  re- 
king  ten-  ceiving  the  advantages  of  secondary  school- 

ing. The  high  school  itself  is  already  feel- 
ing the  influence  of  increased  interest  and  appreciation 
on  the  part  of  the  pupils.  This  is  particularly  true  of 
the  high-school  boys,  who  are  considerably  exceeded  in 
numbers  by  the  girls.  Careful  study  has  shown  that 
the  chief  cause  of  this  shortage  of  boys  is  caused  by  a 
lack  of  interest  in  the  studies  of  the  traditional  high- 
school  curriculum,  and  the  feeling  that  they  have  little 
bearing  on  practical  affairs.  The  proportion  of  boys  in 
the  high  schools  of  the  country  is  at  present  slowly  on 
the  increase.  And  the  percentage  of  increase  is  almost 
uniformly  greatest  in  those  high  schools  that  have  intro- 
duced the  social  efficiency  courses. 

All  triings  considered,  it  seems  safe  to  conclude  that 
the  traditional  disciplinary  high-school  curriculum  is  los- 


THE  CURRICULUM  275 

ing  its  dominance.  The  educational  concept  of  society 
is  against  it  as  a  preparation  for  the  social  activities. 
Disciplinary  ^ne  PUP^S  themselves  have  had  a  taste  of 
concept  losing  other  lines  of  study,  and  are  demanding 

opportunity  for  broader  and  more  vital 
subjects.  And,  finally,  the  college,  the  great  bulwark 
behind  which  this  course  has  taken  refuge  for  several 
centuries,  is  shaping  its  entrance  requirements  so  as  to 
receive  the  newer  subjects  on  equal  terms  with  the  tradi- 
tional. Social  efficiency  as  the  aim  of  education  is 
crowding  hard  the  ideal  of  discipline,  and  bids  fair  soon 
to  become  the  ruling  concept  throughout  the  whole  range 
of  the  curriculum. 

When  education  is  conceived  as  related  to  the  immedi- 
ate social  experience  of  the  individual  instead  of  having 
The  girl  and  ^or  ^ts  function  the  "  disciplining "  of  cer- 
the  high-school  tain  "powers,"  the  question  is  at  once 

raised  whether  the  high-school  curriculum 
should  be  the  same  for  girls  as  for  boys.  This  question  is 
not  so  acute  in  the  grade  curriculum,  although  it  has  its 
beginnings  as  early  as  the  seventh  and  eighth  grades. 
But  during  the  high-school  period  boys  and  girls  cease 
to  be  just  children,  and  take  on  qualities  of  sex.  New 
interests  arise,  new  ambitions  are  born,  new  plans  are 
laid — the  whole  world  of  experience  is  reconstructed  in 
accordance  with  concepts  of  values  not  thought  of  in 
the  elementary  school.  Education  takes  on  a  deeper 
meaning. 

Fundamentals  The  fundamental  aspects  of  the  curric- 
the  same  for  ulum  will,  of  course,  be  the  same  for  both 

sexes;  for  many  of  the  great  lines  of  ex- 
perience are  the  common  property  of  the  race,  and  do 
not  depend  on  sex.  Both  sexes  alike  must  come  into 


276         SOCIAL  PRINCIPLES  OF  EDUCATION 

possession  of  the  "tools  of  knowledge,"  and  also  the 
more  fundamental  aspects  of  culture.  But  the  most 
significant  basis  for  the  division  of  labor  existing  in  so- 
ciety is  that  of  sex.  Diversity  of  function  is  far  greater 
here  than  in  the  different  vocations.  And  it  is  also  true 
that  the  most  vital  functions  performed  by  the  two  sexes 
are  precisely  the  ones  that  are  possessed  by  one  sex  or  the 
other,  and  not  shared  in  common. 

The  man  becomes  the  founder  and  supporter  of  the 
home.  He  seeks  the  mate,  engages  in  a  vocation  to 
Man's  func  supply  the  economic  necessities  for  the 
tionsand  household,  and,  when  necessary  battles  to 

woman's  defend  the  home  or  other  social  institu- 

functions.  .  . 

tions.  The  woman  is  the  keeper  of  the 
home,  and  largely  determines  the  organization  of  its  ac- 
tivities. She  is  the  bearer  of  children,  their  nurse,  care- 
taker, comrade,  and  teacher.  Upon  her  attitude  toward 
the  relations  and  activities  of  the  home  depends  a  great 
proportion  of  its  happiness;  upon  her  knowledge  and 
appreciation  of  aesthetic  values  depends  much  of  the 
quality  of  refinement  in  the  home  environment;  upon 
her  business  ability  depends  a  great  part  of  its  economic 
success;  and  upon  her  knowledge  of  the  fundamental 
truths  of  procreation  and  the  nurture  and  training  of 
children  rests  not  only  the  welfare  of  the  individual,  but 
of  society  as  well. 

The  girl  has  never  been  seriously  considered  in  con- 
nection with  the  curriculum.  It  was  centuries  after  sys- 
The  girl  tematic  training  for  boys  had  been  pro- 

given  a  boy's      vided  before  it  was  thought  necessary  to 

give  the  girl  equal  opportunities  for  educa- 
tion. She  was  then  admitted  into  the  boy's  school,  and 
given  the  boy's  curriculum.  When  schools  were  finally 


THE  CURRICULUM  277 

organized  specifically  for  girls,  the  curriculum  from  the 
boy's  school  was  borrowed  and  made  to  do  service  for 
the  girls.  This  was  not  so  illogical  under  the  disciplinary 
concept  of  education,  for  the  content  of  the  matter 
studied  is,  under  this  concept,  of  minor  importance. 
But  under  the  social-efficiency  concept  this  situation 
cannot  well  continue.  If  the  content  of  education  is 
really  related  to  the  successful  carrying  out  of  one's  life 
problems,  then  the  content  of  the  girl's  curriculum,  par- 
ticularly in  the  high  school,  must  be  different  from  the 
boy's  curriculum.  And  this  does  not  involve  a  question 
of  either  sex  having  a  "better"  education  than  the  other, 
as  has  sometimes  been  argued;  but  each  will  have  an 
education  that  is  di/erent  from  that  of  the  other,  and 
better  for  its  possessor  in  so  far  as  it  prepares  for  the 
particular  functions  of  each. 

A  beginning  has  been  made  in  thus  differentiating  the 
curriculum  for  the  sexes  in  providing  manual  training 

for  boys   and  domestic  science  for  girls. 

Further  differentiation  still  needs  to  be 

worked  out.  It  is  hard  to  defend  an  edu- 
cational policy  that  will  require  a  girl  to  spend  several 
of  the  best  years  of  her  life  in  the  mastery  of  mathemat- 
ical processes  and  formulae  which  she  never  employs,  and 
in  the  acquisition  of  the  linguistic  inflections  and  vo- 
cabulary of  a  language  she  never  uses,  and  then  send 
her  into  the  most  crucial  and  important  experiences  of 
her  life  in  absolute  ignorance  of  the  problems  to  be 
confronted. 

Lines  taken  The  girl  has  long  since  proved  her  men- 

by  girl's  tal  ability;  where  her   curriculum  differs 

from  that  of  the  boy,  it  is  not  to  be  made 
easier,  but  only  to  be  related  to  the  woman's  problems 


278         SOCIAL  PRINCIPLES  OF  EDUCATION 

in  the  home.  The  girl's  curriculum  may  contain  as  much 
science  as  the  boy's;  but,  without  attempting  here  to 
differentiate  it  into  its  branches,  it  will  teach  her  con- 
cerning foods,  both  as  to  their  value  and  preparation; 
it  will  give  her  a  knowledge  of  house  sanitation,  includ- 
ing heating  and  ventilation;  it  will  instruct  her  with 
reference  to  the  human  body,  and  particularly  her  own 
body,  together  with  the  laws  of  physical  development, 
health,  and  efficiency;  it  will  give  her  a  knowledge  of 
fabrics,  including  their  coloring  and  wearing  qualities; 
and  much  other  knowledge  of  immediate  value. 

In  the  social  sciences  also  the  girl  must  be  as  well  edu- 
cated as  the  boy;  but  here  again,  there  is  room  for  dif- 
ferentiation. She  needs  to  study  econo- 
mics,  but  with  particular  application  to  the 
home.  The  economic  basis  of  the  home, 
the  relation  of  income  to  expenditure,  the  proportion  of 
expenditure  that  should  go  to  the  different  sources  of 
outlay,  and  the  methods  of  judging  values  in  purchas- 
ing for  the  home  are  types  of  applied  economics  impor- 
tant to  the  high-school  girl. 

The  girl's  curriculum  should  contain  business  train- 
ing, not  primarily  for  the  store  or  the  office,  but  for  the 
home.  Methods  of  keeping  household  ac- 
counts,  the  use  of  commercial  paper,  and 
the  ordinary  business  forms  and  usages  are 
essential  to  the  manager  of  the  modern  home.  The 
courses  in  domestic  science  should  give  the  high-school 
girl  an  opportunity  to  learn  sewing  and  various  forms 
of  needlework.  Here  she  should  also  be  able  to  find 
instruction  in  the  art  of  serving  meals  in  the  family  or 
to  guests.  She  should  have  opportunity  to  study  house- 
hold art  and  decoration,  and  the  art  of  entertaining. 


THE  CURRICULUM  279 

She  should  find  available  thorough  training  in  music 
from  the  standpoint  of  the  lover  of  the  beautiful.  And 
similarly  for  each  of  the  great  lines  of  activity  that  await 
her  in  her  experience  as  central  figure  in  the  household. 
Society  demands  of  the  woman  that  she  efficiently  man- 
age a  home.  Women  therefore  have  a  social  right  to 
the  training  that  will  prepare  them  for  this  function. 

It  is  true  that  some  of  these  lines  are  not  at  present 
well  organized  for  instruction,  nor  are  teachers  available 
for  them  in  all  the  high  schools.  It  is  not  the  intention 
to  recommend  an  immediate  substitution  of  these  lines 
for  the  present  curriculum,  but  rather  to  suggest  certain 
fundamental  principles  which  must  ultimately  be  worked 
out  if  the  social  concept  of  education  is  to  prevail,  and 
be  applied  to  women  as  well  as  men. 


IV.     The  Organization  of  the  Curriculum 

The  organization  of  the  curriculum  is  of  hardly  less 
importance  than  its  content.  The  great  mass  of  cult- 
Organization  ure  t°  ke  mastered  by  the  child  cannot 
of  the  successfully  be  attacked  as  a  miscellaneous 

curriculum.  •  i 

aggregate,  nor  in  an  unnatural  sequence. 
A  thoroughly  articulated  system  of  subject-matter 
adapted  to  the  powers  and  interests  of  the  individual 
must  be  devised.  The  broad  fields  of  knowledge  must 
be  divided  into  various  co-ordinated  subjects,  and  these 
subjects  again  subdivided  into  related  branches.  The 
relation  of  the  various  branches  to  the  stages  of  devel- 
opment of  the  child  must  be  considered  and  the  inter- 
relations among  the  studies  themselves  discovered.  The 
different  branches  that  are  to  constitute  the  curriculum 


280         SOCIAL  PRINCIPLES  OF  EDUCATION 

are  finally  to  be  fitted  into  the  scheme  of  years,  terms, 
grades,  and  classes  constituting  the  machinery  of  the 
school  organization. 

In  considering  the  lines  of  cleavage  in  the  field  of  so- 
cial culture  which  result  in  the  division  of  the  curricu- 
Synthetic  nat-  ^um  ^nto  studies  and  branches,  it  is  to  be 
ure  of  subject-  remembered  first  of  all  that  social  experi- 
ence is  primarily  a  unitary  thing,  and  hence 
that  culture  is  at  root  all  one  unbroken  whole.  In  the 
concrete  life  of  society,  meeting  its  problems  from  day 
to  day,  there  is  no  separation  of  science  into  the  organic 
and  the  inorganic,  the  mathematical  and  the  social. 
There  is  rather  one  growing  and  developing  field  or  mass 
of  knowledge,  of  which  these  branches  come  ultimately 
to  be  the  different  phases  or  aspects.  The  genetic  view 
of  the  curriculum  is  therefore  always  a  synthetic  view. 
Only  after  a  considerable  field  of  knowledge  has  been 
developed  can  the  division  into  the  different  branches 
be  made.  Not  until  the  product  is  relatively  finished 
can  it  be  classified  on  a  logical  basis  into  its  related  parts. 

Just  as  the  unity  of  subject-matter  parallels  the  unity 

in  social  life,  so  the  principle  governing  the  division  of 

this  subject-matter  into  studies  is  identical 

Social  prm-  J         .      .  . 

cipies  in  organ-  with  the  principles  of  the  social  process, 
ization  of  the  At  the  social  points  of  contact  with  inani- 

curnculum.  r.  .          .  , 

mate  nature,  the  inorganic  sciences  have 
their  origin;  where  social  experience  meets  the  animate 
world,  the  organic  sciences  emerge;  and  where  in  their 
common  activities  men  find  problems  arising  out  of  these 
relations  the  social  sciences  have  their  birth.  Each 
branch  of  study  represents  so  much  organized  social  cult- 
ure ready  to  be  translated  back  into  experience  through 
the  medium  of  the  child. 


THE  CURRICULUM  281 

In  the  organization  of  subject-matter  into  a  curric- 
ulum it  may  be  viewed  from  either  one  of  two  stand- 
_.  .  .  .  points:  the  logical  or  the  psychological. 

The  logical  JmTtL-S     i  __l         •     *i.         •  r  *u          • 

and  the  psy-       The  logical  view  is  the  view  of  the  scien- 


chpiogicai  tisf    who  takes  so  much  of  truth  already 

points  of  view.  1,11  •     •  • 

assembled  and  arranges  it  into  a  consistent 
and  organized  body  of  knowledge.  The  logical  view  is 
not  concerned  with  the  processes  by  which  this  body  of 
truth  was  discovered,  but  seeks  for  a  cross-section  of  it 
as  it  stands.  It  does  not  busy  itself  with  explorations 
seeking  new  fields,  but  charts  and  maps  of  territory  al- 
ready explored.  It  is  not  concerned  with  processes  or 
partial  products,  but  with  completed  products.  It  does 
not  have  in  mind  the  learner,  but  the  subject-matter. 

On  the  contrary,  the  psychological  view  is  the  view  of 
the  learner,  and  not  of  the  scientist;  of  the  explorer, 
and  not  of  the  maker  of  classifications.  The  psycholog- 
ical view  is  concerned  with  the  processes  by  which  the 
culture  was  developed,  and  by  which  it  can  be  trans- 
mitted to  others.  This  view  follows  the  irregular  devia- 
tions of  concrete  experience  at  work  upon  real  problems, 
rather  than  a  classification  of  experience-products  already 
achieved.  It  does  not  deal  with  theoretically  complete 
products,  but  with  partial  products,  so  that  they  meet 
the  immediate  need.  It  has  for  its  aim  the  incorporat- 
ing of  the  subject-matter  into  the  experience  of  the 
child. 

.  .     .         As  the  learner  grows  to  maturity  and  ap- 

Two  points  of  .    &  .      .  ' 

view  tend  to       preaches  the  scientist  in  development,  these 
become  the         two  vjews  approach  each  other  and  tend  to 

same.  .  .       ^  . 

become  identical.  That  is,  when  the  learner 
has  possessed  himself  of  a  considerable  body  of  sci- 
entific truth  and  has  mastered  scientific  method,  he  is 


282         SOCIAL  PRINCIPLES  OF  EDUCATION 

then  able  so  to  control  his  processes  of  knowledge  that 
he  can  eliminate  much  of  the  empirical  cut  and  try,  and 
can  leave  out  many  of  the  devious  wanderings  of  earlier 
stages  and  proceed  more  directly  to  results.  But  the 
child  must  be  a  learner  before  he  can  be  a  scientist;  he 
must  approach  subject-matter  from  the  psychological 
point  of  view  before  he  can  approach  it  from  the  logical 
point  of  view. 

Science  is  ultimately  more  of  a  standpoint  and  a 
method  in  approaching  subjects  than  a  body  of  knowl- 
edge. It  is  true  that  science  is  "a  classi- 
fied  body  of  knowledge."  But  it  is  also 
true  that  a  mere  classified  body  of  knowl- 
edge divorced  from  the  method  that  goes  with  it  would 
not  constitute  science,  but  only  so  much  of  information. 
Of  course  the  method  cannot  be  wholly  separated  from 
the  subject-matter,  but  what  makes  a  body  of  truth 
science  is  the  general  principles  and  concepts  which  dic- 
tate the  proper  description  and  classification  of  facts 
within  this  field.  In  this  sense  science  becomes  a  mode 
of  thought,  an  organization  of  concepts  and  principles 
giving  control  in  its  particular  field. 

No  external  classification  of  so  much  scientific  truth 
can  therefore  constitute  a  body  of  subject-matter  sci- 
ence to  the  child.  No  matter  how  perfect 
mustorganize  tne  co-ordination  of  matter  may  be  in  its 
the  material  arrangement  within  the  branch  or  how  well 
mind!  OWn  arranged  the  branches  of  study,  there  can 
be  no  coherence  of  subject-matter  until  it 
is  effected  in  the  experience  of  the  child.  Organization 
must  proceed  from  within,  and  cannot  be  imposed  from 
without.  A  proper  arrangement  of  the  subject-matter 
will  greatly  assist  in  this  internal  organization,  but  the 


THE  CURRICULUM  283 

relating  is  ultimately  of  the  learner.  Any  attempt  to 
enforce  upon  the  child  an  organization  of  subject-matter 
for  which  he  is  not  yet  ready,  or  which  does  not  fit  into 
his  experience,  only  results  in  memoriter  work.  He  may 
commit  the  matter  to  memory,  but  he  will  lack  the  con- 
cepts and  the  principles  of  organization  necessary  to 
unite  the  facts  into  a  coherent,  useful  body  of  knowledge. 

The  final  source  of  authority  for  the  organization  of 
the  curriculum  must  therefore  be  found  in  the  nature  of 
Final  source  ^ne  cn^d,  and  not  in  the  scientific  classi- 
pf  authority  fication  of  the  scholar.  The  character  of 
ie  child.  <jie  cnjj(j»s  interests  and  activities^  his  nat- 
ural mode  of  attack  on  a  field  of  experience,  the  method 
and  order  of  his  mind's  unfolding,  the  final  meaning  and 
outcome  of  present  attitudes  and  ambitions  —  these  must 
determine  the  arrangement  of  subjects  in  the  curriculum 
and  the  order  of  procedure  within  the  branches  them- 
selves. 

It  is  hardly  necessary  to  say  that  the  present  organi- 

zation of  the  curriculum  does  not  proceed  from  this  point 

of  view.    The  curriculum  was  originally 

present  organ-     arranged  by  scholars  who  had  in  mind  the 


violates    fittest  organization  of  so  much  subiect-mat- 

this  principle.  J 

ter,  rather  than  the  best  mode  of  procedure 
for  the  uninitiated  learner  in  approaching  this  field.  In- 
deed, the  child  mind  was  not  thought  of  as  being  different 
in  its  processes  from  the  adult  mind;  there  was  only  less 
of  it  in  power  and  scope.  Text-books  were  not  even  ar- 
ranged in  a  graded  series  until  a  century  or  two  ago. 
The  child  was  expected  to  begin  at  whatever  point  in 
the  subject-matter  a  logical  classification  set  out  as  a 
beginning.  The  study  of  language  was  begun  with 
grammar.  And  parsing,  declensions,  conjugations,  and 


284         SOCIAL  PRINCIPLES  OF  EDUCATION 

rules  of  syntax  afforded  the  child  his  entrance  into  the 
subject.  Similarly,  the  rules  and  principles  of  arith- 
metic, instead  of  concrete  and  practical  exercises  in  the 
use  of  number,  introduced  the  learner  to  the  subject  of 
mathematics. 

This  order  of  procedure  has  been  greatly  modified  in 
recent  years,  especially  as  to  the  organization  of  matter 
illustrations  of  within  a  particular  subject.  The  applica- 
the  logical  tion  of  the  principles  of  induction  to  teach- 
ing has  resulted  in  an  attempt  at  a  psy- 
chological instead  of  a  logical  mode  of  approach  to  many 
of  the  subjects.  In  the  matter  of  organizing  the  sub- 
jects themselves  into  a  psychological  series  in  the  curric- 
ulum, there  has  been  less  progress.  It  is  still  common  to 
find  the  more  abstract  subjects,  and  those  that  are  far- 
thest from  the  activities  and  experience  of  the  child, 
placed  ahead  of  the  more  concrete  and  vital  subjects. 
Thus,  in  the  elementary  curriculum,  the  child  is  in  many 
schools  first  given  such  formal  branches  as  reading, 
numbers,  and  writing  before  the  social  and  industrial 
activities  and  nature  study.  In  the  high  school  the 
more  abstract  and  symbolical  sciences  frequently  pre- 
cede the  concrete  and  practical  ones. 

Individual  experience,  as  well  as  social  experience,  is 
a  unitary  process;  there  are  no  gaps  and  no  abrupt 
breaks.  The  child  begins  his  life  in  the 
midst  of  concrete  social  activities  of  the 
most  immediate  and  vital  nature  possible. 
He  deals  with  real  objects,  real  problems,  and  real  in- 
terests. There  is  nothing  distant,  abstract,  and  symboli- 
cal in  the  whole  round  of  his  experience.  There  is  no 
separation  of  social  experience  from  his  own  individual 
experience ;  it  is  all  one.  There  is  no  such  thing  as  culture 


THE  CURRICULUM  285 

or  knowledge  outside  the  processes  of  his  own  daily 
life  This  is  the  situation  up  to  the  time  of  entering 
school. 

Now,  it  is  precisely  upon  the  basis  of  this  unity  and 
concreteness  of  the  child's  experience  that  the  curriculum 
The  cue  to  the  should  be  organized.  The  child's  interests 
elementary  are  specifically  related  to  the  social  activi- 

curriculum.  A«       •         i  •   i    i  A»   •  i  i 

ties  in  which  he  participates,  to  people,  and 
to  things.  Herein  is  the  cue  to  the  core  of  the  curricu- 
lum for  the  elementary  school. 

Lying  closest  of  all  to  the  social  experience  of  the 
child  is  the  group  of  occupational  subjects,  involving 
Social  the  various  handicrafts,  drawing,  painting, 

activities  at  and  modelling.  Immediately  related  to 
the  occupations  are  the  subjects  having  to 
do  with  nature  and  with  man;  namely,  geography  in  its 
broadest  sense,  and  history  approached  largely  from  the 
biographical  standpoint.  Growing  out  of  the  necessities 
of  these  subjects,  language  and  number  will  soon  be  de- 
manded as  tools,  and  later,  the  formal  aspects  of  sci- 
ence will  be  approached  in  the  same  way.  It  is  not 
meant,  of  course,  that  this  is  to  be  a  strictly  chronolog- 
ical order,  as  all  of  these  groups  will  in  some  degree  be 
represented  all  the  time.  It  is  rather  an  order  of  em- 
phasis, a  method  of  genetic  procedure. 

This  order  is  thoroughly  in  accord  with  the  progres- 
sive development  of  experience  in  the  child.  It  begins 
closest  to  his  socialized  interests  and  leads  out  to  his 
environment  on  the  social  and  the  physical  sides.  The 
symbols  of  language  and  number,  the  so-called  " tools" 
of  knowledge,  lie  farthest  from  the  child's  immediate  in- 
terests and  experience,  and  hence  are  given  their  true 
place  as  a  means  instead  of  an  end. 


286         SOCIAL  PRINCIPLES  OF  EDUCATION 

Under  the  type  of  organization  that  introduces  the 

learner  to  the  curriculum  through  the  medium  of  the 

"three  R's,"  this  is  all  turned  about.    Ac- 

Old  type  of  ...... 

organization  CUStomed  to  SOCial  activities  based  On  COn- 
reverses  crete  and  immediate  interest  in  people  and 
natural  order.  .  .  ,  .  .  ,, 

things,  the  child  is  withdrawn  from  all  this 
life,  an  absolute  break  is  attempted  in  his  experience, 
and  he  is  given  a  set  of  books  full  of  symbols  of  lan- 
guage and  of  number.  Up  to  the  time  of  entering  school, 
the  child  has  never  been  interested  in  language  as  lan- 
guage, but  always  as  a  means  of  expressing  himself  to 
those  about  him  with  reference  to  his  wishes  or  needs, 
or  else  in  interpreting  their  attitude  with  reference  to 
himself.  He  has  never  been  interested  in  number  as 
number,  but  always  for  the  sake  of  real  computations 
dealing  with  his  own  playthings  or  play  interests.  He 
has  never  been  interested  in  using  his  hand  to  produce 
symbols,  as  in  writing,  but  rather  his  handicraft  has 
been  exercised  in  constructing  playthings  or  in  perform- 
ing errands  and  duties  about  the  home.  Under  the  re- 
gime of  the  "three  R's,"  the  child  is  forbidden  the  nor- 
mal course  of  his  accustomed  experience  and  required  to 
address  himself  wholly  to  a  new  type  of  experience,  which 
lacks  social  activity,  lacks  immediacy  of  interests,  lacks 
concreteness,  lacks  reality.  He  is  given  material  which 
is  wholly  symbolical,  in  the  highest  degree  abstract, 
and  which  has  no  immediate  relation  to  the  run  of  his 
daily  experience. 

But  shall  we  not,  then,  teach  the  children 
thT"toois?"        to  read  an<i  write  and  number?    Surely. 

It  is  only  that  manual  training,  geogra- 
phy, and  history  are  to  be  the  core  of  the  curriculum, 
the  centre  of  immediate  activities.  If  such  is  the  case, 


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THE  CURRICULUM  287 

the  need  will  soon  arise  in  the  experience  of  the  child  for 
a  command  of  reading,  of  numbers,  and  of  writing.  He 
will  require  these  things  in  his  business.  He  is  ham- 
pered without  them,  hence  he  wants  them.  And  when 
the  need  for  a  thing  is  consciously  felt,  the  thing  is  half 
achieved.  Not  but  that  the  child  will  have  to  be  taught 
reading,  and  perhaps  made  to  learn  the  multiplication 
table;  but  even  so,  the  centre  of  the  motive  lies  within 
the  demands  of  his  own  experience,  and  the  effort  will 
be  with  better  effect;  and  further,  the  symbols  will  have 
a  vital  significance  for  him  as  he  learns  them,  which  they  do 
not  have  under  the  barren  system  of  the  "three  R's,"  of  the 
logical  curriculum. 

The  accompanying  diagram  represents  the  organiza- 
tion of  a  curriculum  for  the  elementary  school  and  the 
Analysis  of  ^S^1  scno°l  based  on  the  psychological 
accompanying  mode  of  procedure.  As  already  stated,  the 
iiagram.  basis  of  such  an  arrangement  is  found  in 

the  social  activities  of  the  child;  hence  there  is  no  break 
in  his  experience  between  the  activities  of  the  school  and 
those  outside.  The  social  activities  of  the  child  natu- 
rally relate  themselves  to  the  handicrafts,  to  art,  to  the 
immediate  natural  environment,  and  to  the  social  envi- 
ronment. These  four  lines  are  not  at  first  sharply  dif- 
ferentiated, but  are  rather  different  aspects  of  a  unified 
experience.  In  connection  with  the  activities  in  these 
subjects,  language,  number,  and  writing  are  required; 
hence  the  symbols  are  mastered  and  the  technique  ac- 
quired. What  may  be  called  the  real  experience  of  the 
fundamental  subjects  possessing  social  content  is  made 
the  basis  for  the  formal  experience  of  the  ancillary  sub- 
jects considered  as  tools. 

As  the  child  advances  through  the  elementary  school, 


288         SOCIAL  PRINCIPLES  OF  EDUCATION 

differentiation  begins  to  take  place  in  the  various  sub- 
jects. The  handicrafts  may  subdivide  into  manual  train- 
ing and  domestic  science.  Art  comes  to  in- 
dMerPenStfon!  clude  painting,  drawing,  modelling,  music, 
and  designing.  Nature  study  will  involve 
lessons  concerning  the  human  body,  plant  life,  animal 
life,  and  the  earth  as  the  home  of  man.  The  study  of 
society  will  be  carried  on  through  the  medium  of  the 
story,  biography,  history,  and  the  social  activities  of  the 
community.  These  subjects,  with  whatever  subdivi- 
sions and  modifications  are  required,  together  with  lan- 
guage, number,  and  writing  as  tools,  will  therefore  con- 
stitute the  curriculum  of  the  elementary  school. 

The  differentiation  that  began  within  the  various  sub- 
jects is  carried  still  further  in  the  high  school.    Manual 
training  expands  into  its  various  lines,  and 

Still  further  .  .  '. 

differentiation  may  eventuate  in  specialized  vocational 
in  the  high  training.  Domestic  science  likewise  is  still 
further  subdivided,  and  made  to  cover  the 
most  important  phases  of  the  home  activities.  Art  in 
its  various  forms  may  be  studied  either  from  the  stand- 
point of  its  technique  or  of  appreciation.  Science  is 
represented  by  the  organic  and  the  inorganic  groups, 
each  of  which  is  still  further  subdivided  into  its  various 
branches  in  the  order  of  their  concreteness  or  their  re- 
lation to  the  experience  of  the  individual.  The  field  of 
the  social  sciences  develops  into  concrete  sociology  and 
ethics,  history,  civics,  and  economics.  Mental  science 
is  represented  by  psychology  and  by  linguistics,  or  the 
logical  aspect  of  language.  In  the  high  school  as  in  the 
elementary  school  the  formal  subjects,  language  and 
mathematics,  are  looked  upon  as  tools  and  hence  made 
supplementary  to  the  subjects  possessing  social  content. 


THE  CURRICULUM  289 

The  high-school  curriculum  therefore  represents  a 
much  higher  degree  of  differentiation  than  that  of  the 
Growth  of  elementary  school;  it  also  represents  a 
scientific  higher  degree  of  generalization.  The  con- 

crete and  immediate  facts  of  the  undiffer- 
entiated  elementary  branches  have  been  thought  into 
general  truths  and  principles.  Concepts  have  evolved, 
and  method  and  technique  of  experience  been  developed. 
Mere  information  has  been  organized  into  science,  and  is 
used  as  an  instrument  of  control  in  the  further  recon- 
struction of  experience.  The  psychological  point  of  view 
has  come  to  approach  the  logical.  Education  is  seen  to 
be  synonymous  with  experience,  and  social  efficiency  is 
conceived  as  its  aim. 

The  arrangement  of  branches  in  the  high-school  curric- 
ulum, like  that  in  the  elementary  school,  is  based  on  the 

Arrangement  of  nature  of  the  pupil's  experience.  The  Sub- 
branches  in  ject-matter  must  relate  itself  to  the  order 
of  the  individual's  interests  and  develop- 
ment. Material  science  should  be  approached,  not 
through  the  generalizations  and  abstractions  of  phys- 
ics and  chemistry,  but  through  botany,  zoology,  geol- 
ogy, and  physiology,  leaving  the  more  formal  parts  of 
physics  and  chemistry  for  the  last.  Literature  should 
not  begin  with  the  writings  of  Chaucer,  Dryden,  and 
Milton,  but  with  those  whose  spirit  and  subject-matter 
lie  closer  to  the  experience  of  the  pupil.  History  should 
not  start  with  the  earliest  period,  causing  the  pupils  to 
study  peoples  whose  governments,  industries,  and  insti- 
tutions were  so  different  from  our  own  that  they  lack 
interest  and  reality  to  the  learner.  The  study  of  civics 
should  begin  with  the  points  at  which  the  activities  of 
the  state  touch  the  experience  of  the  individual,  and 


290         SOCIAL  PRINCIPLES  OF  EDUCATION 

proceed  outward  to  the  federal  and  state  organizations. 
And  so  on  throughout  the  high-school  curriculum.  The 
psychological  principle  of  organization  will  demand, 
both  in  the  arrangement  of  the  branches  in  the  course  of 
study  and  in  the  organization  of  the  matter  within  the 
branch,  that  we  proceed  from  the  concrete  to  the  ab- 
stract, and  from  the  immediate  to  the  more  distant  in 
the  pupil's  experience. 

REFERENCES 

Brown,  The  Making  of  Our  Middle  Schools;  Butler,  The  Mean- 
ing of  Education,  chs.  I,  II;  Davenport,  Education  for  Efficiency; 
Dewey,  The  Child  and  the  Curriculum;  also,  The  Educational  Sit- 
uation; Eliot,  Education  for  Efficiency;  Hanus,  Beginnings  of  In- 
dustrial Education;  Hollister,  High-School  Administration;  Mark, 
The  New  Movement  in  Education;  Monroe,  History  of  Education, 
chs.  VIII-XIV;  Russell,  Industrial  Arts  in  the  Elementary  School; 
Snedden,  The  Problem  of  Vocational  Training;  Snyder,  Manual 
Training  in  the  Grades;  Thorndike,  Individual  Differences  in  Ed- 
ucation; Tyler,  Growth  and  Education,  chs.  XI-XVI;  Mathematics 
in  the  Elementary  School,  Bulletin  U.  S.  Bu.  Ed.,  No.  460;  Math- 
ematics in  Secondary  Schools,  Bulletin  U.  S.  Bu.  Ed.,  No.  463. 


CHAPTER  XI 
THE  SOCIAL  ORGANIZATION  OF  THE  SCHOOL 

I.     The  Social  Nature  of  the  School 

The  school,  both  in  its  function  and  its  organization, 
is  a  social  institution.  It  is  the  agency  selected  by  so- 
Social  ciety  for  the  socialization  of  the  individual, 

function  of  Its  curriculum  consists  of  the  social  culture 
of  the  past  selected  and  arranged  for  the 
use  of  the  child.  Teachers  stand  as  the  representatives 
of  society  in  helping  the  child  to  adjust  himself  to  the 
social  activities.  The  organization  of  the  school  must 
be  such  as  to  further  the  aim  of  society  in  socializing  the 
individual.  It  must  embody  the  social  standards  and 
ideals,  and  stand  as  a  type  of  the  wider  social  organiza- 
tion of  which  the  school  is  a  part.  The  problem  of  the 
organization  of  the  school  therefore  involves  the  prin- 
ciples of  social  organization  in  general. 

The  school  is  in  fact  a  miniature  society.    It  possesses 
social  coherence,  and  is  united  by  social  bonds  the  same 
as  society  in  its  broader  organization.    The 
a  sociai'unit       activities  of  the  school  present  many  situa- 
tions typical  in  the  activities  outside.    The 
demand  upon  the  individual  for  the  subordination  of 
personal  preferences  and  desires  with  reference  to  the 
common  good  is  insistent.     Emulation  and  competition 
and  the  opportunity  to  measure  the  self  by  social  stand- 

291 


292         SOCIAL  PRINCIPLES  OF  EDUCATION 

ards  are  always  present.  Labor  is  demanded  and  social 
penalties  are  inflicted  for  laziness  or  low-grade  achieve- 
ment. Success  is  rewarded  by  the  approval  of  public 
opinion  and  the  elevation  of  the  efficient  to  positions 
of  leadership.  Misdemeanors  are  punished  by  social 
depreciation  and  by  the  application  of  the  social  law 
covering  the  offence. 

Nor  is  the  school's  social  organization  something 
forced  upon  it  from  without  in  violation  of  its  own 
_  .  nature.  The  principle  of  its  organization 

Nature  of  the        ,.  .  .     . 

school  lies  deep  in  the  inner  nature  of  the  school 

determines  its     jtself;   that  is  to  say,  in  the  nature  of  the 

organization.  .,        .  •"  «  T. 

pupils  who  constitute  the  school.  Both  in 
his  original  nature  and  in  his  experience  the  child  is 
social.  In  his  activities  outside  the  school  the  individual 
is  vitally  in  touch  with  social  stimuli,  and  constantly  in- 
volved in  social  situations  that  demand  a  response  of 
adjustment,  effort,  and  co-operation.  The  school,  at 
its  best,  not  only  presents  social  situations  of  the  same 
type  as  those  outside,  but  is  organized  and  controlled 
with  particular  reference  to  emphasizing  the  most  funda- 
mental and  significant  social  stimuli  as  motives  to  ad- 
justment and  control  on  the  part  of  the  individual.  The 
inner  law  of  the  organization  of  the  school  is  therefore 
but  the  law  of  the  organization  of  society;  and  what- 
ever modifications  are  necessary  to  adapt  this  broader 
law  to  the  school  are  but  changes  in  its  administration 
and  not  in  its  spirit.  The  great  problem  in  the  organi- 
zation of  the  school,  therefore,  is  to  make  it  present  in  all 
its  complex  activities  the  situations  that  are  typical  of  the 
social  situations  common  to  the  experience  of  the  child. 


SOCIAL  ORGANIZATION  OF  THE  SCHOOL    293 


II.    The  Social  Spirit  of  the  School 

No  more  important  factor  exists  with  reference  to  the 
organization  of  the  school  than  that  of  the  spirit  or  at- 
titude of  the  pupils  toward  the  school.  For 
the'schooL  upon  this  depends  in  large  degree  the  suc- 
cess of  the  school  both  in  its  social  and  in 
its  intellectual  organization.  How  do  pupils  look  upon 
the  school:  as  an  opportunity  or  an  imposition?  What 
interest  do  they  feel  in  its  organization  and  activities? 
In  how  far  is  the  school  their  school,  and  not  the  teacher's 
or  the  district's  school?  Are  the  interests  of  the  school 
identical  with  the  interests  of  the  pupils,  or  are  there 
two  sets  of  interests  here,  which,  if  not  antagonistic,  are 
at  least  not  identical?  Is  the  school  something  rather 
foreign  to  the  most  vital  interests  and  activities  of  the 
child,  a  phase  of  experience  that  must  perforce  be  ac- 
cepted but  not  valued  as  a  present  mode  of  experience? 
It  is  significant  that  these  questions  do  not  ordinarily 
arise  in  the  mind  of  the  child  with  reference  to  the 
A  negative  home,  nor  in  the  mind  of  the  adult  with 
attitude  often  reference  to  the  state.  These  institutions 
are  accepted  as  a  natural  and  necessary 
part  of  experience,  and  no  divorcement  of  interests  is 
felt  in  connection  with  their  activities.  It  is  to  be  feared 
that  this  cannot  be  claimed  for  the  school.  The  same 
feeling  of  the  unity  of  aim  and  spirit  does  not  exist  be- 
tween the  child  and  the  school  that  holds  for  the  home. 
Too  often  the  school  is  looked  upon  by  the  pupils  as  an 
institution  rather  forced  upon  them,  and  not  having  any 
particular  claim  on  their  loyalty  and  appreciation.  The 
school  often  seems  to  the  pupil  to  have  its  own  aims, 


294         SOCIAL  PRINCIPLES  OF  EDUCATION 

standards,  and  standpoints,  which  must  in  some  degree 
be  conformed  to,  but  which  are,  nevertheless,  not  the 
aims,  standards,  and  standpoints  of  the  pupils.  It  is 
evident  that  this  situation,  in  so  far  as  it  exists,  tends 
to  create  a  constant  condition  of  strain  between  the 
pupil  and  the  school  organization. 

It  is  true  that  this  lack  of  identity  of  interests  be- 
tween the  school  and  the  child  is  not  formulated  in  any 
complete  and  positive  way  by  the  pupils 
co-optation.  themselves.  In  so  far  as  such  a  breach  ex- 
ists, it  is  more  a  matter  of  negative  spirit, 
or  of  indifferent  attitude,  than  of  calculated  opposition 
or  open  rebellion.  The  teacher  is  looked  upon  as  pos- 
sessing certain  authority,  and  as  being,  within  reason- 
able limits,  justified  in  using  it;  but  at  the  same  time, 
teachers  in  their  r61e  as  governor  and  administrator  are 
quite  commonly  looked  upon  as  natural  enemies  of  the 
pupils,  and  any  advantage  that  may  be  taken  of  them 
is  legitimate  in  the  code  of  many  schools.  If  misde- 
meanors are  committed,  it  is  the  business  of  the  teacher 
to  discover  the  culprits,  who  are  counted  to  have  scored 
one  on  the  teacher  if  they  escape  detection.  If  lessons 
are  poorly  prepared  and  the  teacher  does  not  discover 
the  delinquency,  so  much  the  worse  for  the  teacher;  the 
responsibility  is  his.  Growing  out  of  this  attitude  a  bar- 
rier has  frequently  arisen  between  teacher  and  pupils 
in  their  school  relations,  which  prevents  the  full  identi- 
fication of  interests  and  the  complete  response  of  sym- 
pathy and  co-operation  necessary  to  the  best  results  in 
education. 

Undoubtedly  this  attitude,  wherever  it  exists,  is  a 
source  of  great  educational  waste.  It  gives  the  child  a 
wrong  impression  of  the  school  and  of  the  value  of  its 


SOCIAL  ORGANIZATION  OF  THE  SCHOOL    295 

activities.  Instead  of  looking  on  the  school  as  an  op- 
portunity for  vital  and  fruitful  experience,  it  is  to  the 
Waste  through  cmld  a  place  where  so  much  of  effort  and 
lack  of  so  many  tasks  are  to  be  exchanged  for  a  cer- 

co-operafaon.       ^am  num^er  of  passing  marks,  promotions, 

and  diplomas.  This  cannot  but  result  in  a  failure  to  bring 
all  the  powers  of  the  individual  into  action,  and  hence 
is  a  hindrance  to  development.  It  also  tends  to  create 
a  feeling  of  indifference  to  the  subject-matter  of  the 
curriculum,  and  leaves  the  child  without  incentive  to 
continue  his  education. 

It  would  seem  that  the  school  should  claim  the  pupil's 
deepest  affection  and  fullest  loyalty.     It  should  appeal 
to  ^m  as  ^s  scno°l  in  the  same  sense  that 


Why  lack 

of  loyalty  his  home  appeals  to  him  as  his  home.    The 

•  the  school?  weifare  an(j  gOOd  name  of  the  school  should 
be  second  in  the  child's  regard  only  to  the  welfare  and 
good  name  of  his  home.  Why  is  such  not  more  often 
the  case?  How  does  this  negative  attitude  arise? 

Whether  we  succeed  in  answering  this  question  or  not, 
one  thing  is  certain  from  the  start:  the  fault  does  not 
The  fault  ^e  Prmiarily  with  the  child.  His  very  nat- 

not  in  the  ure  leads  to  loyalty  and  responsiveness,  and 

these  qualities  will  attach  to  the  school 
when  the  school  is  able  to  claim  them.  The  adults  or- 
ganize the  school  and  determine  its  policy  and  manage- 
ment; whatever  lack  of  responsiveness  there  exists  on 
the  part  of  the  pupils  must  be  looked  for  in  the  organi- 
zation of  the  school,  and  not  in  the  nature  of  the  child. 
Attitudes  do  not  arise  by  chance;  they  grow  from  a  suc- 
cession of  experiences,  and  take  their  color  and  quality 
from  the  series  of  concrete  situations  in  which  they  have 
their  origin.  If  we  should  find  the  children  of  a  nation 


SOCIAL  PRINCIPLES  OF  EDUCATION 

deficient  in  respect  and  loyalty  for  their  homes,  we  should 
be  justified  in  concluding  that  the  home  experience  of 
these  children  was  lacking  in  certain  qualities;  similarly, 
when  we  find  children  deficient  in  responsiveness  to  their 
schools,  we  must  seek  the  explanation  in  the  type  of 
experience  afforded  by  the  school. 

What  is  to  be  found  in  the  organization  of  the  school 
to  explain  this  seeming  defection  on  the  part  of  many 
_  t  .  pupils?  One  of  the  two  factors  affording 

Factors  for  ,  ,  . 

which  the  the  explanation  has  already  been  discussed; 

school  is  namely,  the  content  and  organization  of  the 

responsible. 

curriculum.  The  disciplinary  curriculum, 
possessing  formal  instead  of  social  content,  is  divorced 
from  the  interests  and  activities  of  the  child,  and  hence 
his  school  tasks  have  little  relation  to  real  experience. 
When  this  curriculum  is  organized  from  the  logical  point 
of  view  instead  of  from  the  psychological,  it  is  still  fur- 
ther separated  from  the  life  of  the  child.  This  situation 
makes  it  necessary,  or  at  least  easy,  for  the  child  to  con- 
ceive two  related,  but  more  or  less  antagonistic,  orders : 
the  interests  and  activities  of  his  own  concrete  experi- 
ence and  the  activities  demanded  by  the  school.  This 
divorcement  in  the  intellectual  organization  of  the  school 
is  being  remedied  by  the  modification  of  the  curriculum 
in  its  content  and  organization  as  already  shown.  These 
changes  in  the  curriculum  have  already  gone  far  enough 
to  warrant  the  statement  that  they  are  responsible  for  a 
marked  improvement  in  the  spirit  of  the  school  in  many 
instances. 

The  second  of  the  factors  upon  which  the  spirit  of  co- 
operation on  the  part  of  the  pupils  depends  is  the  social 
organization  of  the  school.  By  social  organization  is 
meant  the  organization  of  the  activities  and  relation- 


SOCIAL  ORGANIZATION  OF  THE  SCHOOL    297 

ships  by  which  the  work  of  the  curriculum  is  carried 
out.  This  will  include  all  phases  of  the  machinery  of 
the  school,  such  as  classes,  grades,  and  the  various  mat- 
ters of  routine,  and,  in  addition,  the  relations  between 
the  pupils  with  each  other  in  the  prosecution  of  their 
work  and  also  between  teachers  and  pupils.  These 
questions  may  now  be  viewed  somewhat  more  in  detail. 

///.     The  Organization  of  the  Elementary  School 

One  of  the  chief  desiderata  in  the  education  of  the 

child  is  to  provide  conditions  favoring  a  continuous  and 

unbroken  line  of  experience.    There  should 

The  school  to 

continue  be  no  tangents  or  split-on  particles  that 

experience  in      become  divorced  from  the  main  body  of 

the  home.  .  _,  .  .  .  * 

experience.  This  principle  requires  that, 
just  as  in  the  intellectual  organization  of  the  curriculum 
the  child  is  to  be  started  at  the  nearest  point  of  con- 
tact with  his  home  and  community  activities,  so  in  the 
social  organization  of  the  school  the  highest  type  of 
home  and  community  conditions  are  to  be  simulated. 
The  school  should  not  appear  as  a  foreign  element  in 
the  life  of  the  child,  but  as  an  integral  part  of  a  devel- 
oping experience. 

A  primary  requisite  in  giving  the  school  organization 
a  home  atmosphere  is  to  give  it  a  home  appearance  on 
Material  ^e  material  side.  It  is  true  that  our 

equipment  school-houses,  especially  in  the  cities,  are 
WL  being  reasonably  well  built,  both  from  the 
practical  and  the  architectural  standpoint.  Yet  the 
rooms,  when  they  are  finished  and  furnished,  have  a 
strangely  stiff,  barren,  and  uninteresting  appearance. 
Usually  the  floor  space  is  well  occupied  with  unshapely 


298         SOCIAL  PRINCIPLES  OF  EDUCATION 

desks  fastened  in  parallel  rows  to  the  floor.  The  walls 
may  be  well  tinted  and  adorned  with  good  pictures, 
but  the  entire  effect  of  the  room  is  far  from  being  that 
of  a  place  to  live.  If  it  is  said  that  the  school-room  is 
not  a  living-room,  but  a  workshop,  then  we  must  an- 
swer that  the  typica  school-room  does  not  look  even  like 
a  workshop,  but  only  like  a  place  to  sit  in  rows  while 
one  reads  books. 

The  problem  is  rendered  all  the  more  serious  by  the 

fact  that  in  many  schools,  especially  outside  the  cities, 

Poor  biddings     tne  buildings  are  poor,  and  little  atten- 

andfur-  tion  is  given  to  making  the  rooms  attrac- 

ushings.  tjve     ^jie   (jggkg   are   often   scarred   and 

dirty,  and  the  floors  not  well  kept;  the  walls  harshly 
tinted  or  soiled  and  discolored,  and  decorations  either 
lacking  or  not  in  good  taste.  To  say  that  many  chil- 
dren find  conditions  better  in  the  school  than  they  are 
accustomed  to  in  their  homes  does  not  answer  the  ques- 
tion. Society  should  in  its  schools  set  standards  and 
inculcate  ideals  that  are  measured  by  the  best  of  its 
membership,  and  not  by  the  worst.  It  is  one  of  the 
anomalies,  explained  only  by  the  fact  of  social  inertia, 
that  so  many  parents  who  surround  their  children  with 
an  environment  of  taste  and  artistic  excellence  in  the 
home  are  willing  to  have  them  spend  almost  half  of 
their  time  during  the  formative  period  of  their  lives  in 
surroundings  lacking  most  of  the  qualities  that  make 
the  home  attractive. 

School  Tradition  is  an  important  element  in  de- 

equipment          termming  the  type  of  our  school-rooms  and 
equipment.     Our  schools  originated  in  a 
time  of  poverty  and  forced  economy.    There  was  no 
money  to  equip  the  school  better  than  was  done,  and 


SOCIAL  ORGANIZATION  OF  THE  SCHOOL    299 

indeed  the  school  was  as  well  furnished  as  the  home. 
Further,  under  the  older  concept  of  education,  there 
was  little  need  for  equipment  other  than  desks,  since 
the  study  of  books  constituted  the  sole  function  of  the 
school.  We  have  greatly  changed  our  concepts  of  edu- 
cation, but  have  not  fully  kept  pace  in  supplying  the 
means  for  their  realization. 

One  of  the  first  steps  necessary  in  changing  the  atmos- 
phere of  the  school  to  a  freer  social  atmosphere  is  to  re- 
TOO  many  duce  tne  number  of  pupils  assigned  to  a 
pupils  to  teacher  and  to  a  school-room.  A  group  of 

forty  children  cannot  constitute  a  family 
and  would  only  degenerate  into  a  mob  if  given  the  same 
degree  of  freedom  as  in  the  home.  Here  we  at  once 
encounter  the  question  of  the  economic  basis  of  our 
schools.  A  society  cannot  put  more  than  a  fair  pro- 
portion of  its  wealth  into  the  education  of  its  young. 
There  are  numerous  lines  of  economic  expenditure  ab- 
solutely demanded  of  society  in  addition  to  that  of  edu- 
cation. The  resources  of  the  country  must  be  devel- 
oped and  its  industries  extended;  a  system  of  national 
defence  must  be  provided;  government  must  be  sup- 
ported; homes  and  churches  must  be  maintained,  and 
many  other  lines  of  activity  carried  out. 

It  may  well  be  seriously  questioned,  however,  whether 
America  is  putting  a  large  enough  proportion  of  her 
wealth  into  education.    It  is  at  least  cer- 
support.  tam  that>  instead  of  increasing  the  propor- 

tion, as  might  be  expected  of  a  highly  in- 
telligent democratic  society,  we  are  actually  expending 
a  smaller  proportion  of  our  wealth  on  education  than  we 
were  a  generation  ago,  and  far  less  than  in  the  earlier 
stages  of  our  history.  A  people  that  expends  twice  as 


300        SOCIAL  PRINCIPLES  OF  EDUCATION 

much  for  its  tobacco  as  for  the  current  expenses  of  pub- 
lic education  can  hardly  be  said  to  be  draining  the  public 
purse  for  its  schools. 

The  large  number  of  pupils  assigned  to  each  teacher 
also  seems  to  necessitate  a  more  or  less  rigid  division 
Limitations  mto  classes  and  grades.  Not  only  are 
imposed  by  forty  children  too  many  for  a  true  family, 

ngid  gra  mg.        j^j.    £ney    are    ajgo    ^QQ   many    for    a    good 

working  group;  hence  they  must  be  taught  largely  in 
mass.  There  is  no  special  reason,  except  that  of  eco- 
nomic expediency,  why  pupils  should  follow  each  other 
through  the  curriculum  just  a  year,  or  even  half  a  year, 
apart.  Likewise,  the  same  reason  must  be  invoked  to 
explain  why  a  child  who  can  do  a  certain  section  of  work 
in  three  months  should  be  kept  upon  it  four  and  a  half 
months  because  that  is  the  speed  of  the  average  of  his 
class;  or,  on  the  other  hand,  why  one  who  requires  six 
months  for  it  should  be  passed  over  it  in  the  regular 
time. 

It  is  true  that  mental  measurements  have  shown  that 
a  very  large  proportion  of  children  fall  within  reasonably 
narrow  limits  of  school  ability.  It  is  not  to  be  forgot- 
ten, however,  that  these  measures  were  made  upon  chil- 
dren who  had  already  been  subjected  to  the  levelling 
process  of  general  class  instruction.  It  is  also  probable 
that  in  not  adequately  caring  for  the  interests  of  the 
exceptionally  able  child  an  occasional  genius  and  not  a 
few  persons  of  high-grade  ability  are  lost  to  society. 

The  disadvantages  coming  from  the  close 

limitations.         grading  and  formation  of  classes  rendered 

almost  necessary  by  the  large  number  of 

pupils    taught  by   one  teacher   are    accompanied    by 

other  disadvantages  connected  with    the  preservation 


SOCIAL  ORGANIZATION  OF  THE  SCHOOL    301 

of  order  and  quiet  in  the  room.  The  highly  desirable 
freedom  and  spontaneity  that  would  be  suitable  in  a 
small  group  of  children  would  rapidly  become  riot  and 
disorder  in  a  room  full.  The  spirit  of  the  crowd  takes 
hold  in  the  larger  group,  and  renders  restraints  more 
necessary  and  harder  to  apply.  Thus  the  problem  of 
control  with  reference  to  movements  and  acts  perfectly 
harmless  in  themselves,  but  constituting  an  offence 
against  school  regulations  necessary  because  of  the 
number  of  pupils,  becomes  one  of  the  chief  sources 
of  difficulty  hi  many  schools  The  result  is  not  only 
a  condition  of  strain  between  teacher  and  pupils,  but 
a  limitation  upon  the  pupils  which  becomes  irksome, 
if  not  finally  a  menace,  to  physical  health  and  devel- 
opment. 

The  massing  of  children  together  in  large  numbers 
under  one  teacher  also  limits  the  opportunities  for  group 
,,  .  and  co-operative  work.  Many  of  the  school 

Massing  . 

prevents  activities  could  be  carried  on  to  good  ad- 

co-operative  vantage  by  small  groups  working  together 
under  the  suggestion  of  the  teacher  and 
without  the  formal  restraints  necessary  with  the  larger 
numbers.  Such  is  the  case  with  the  handicrafts,  geogra- 
phy, and  various  lines  of  concrete  elementary  science, 
drawing,  and  other  subjects.  In  schools  where  agricult- 
ure and  gardening  are  taught,  it  is  highly  desirable  to 
secure  co-operative  participation  by  the  pupils.  Such 
co-operation  is  necessary  not  only  from  the  standpoint 
of  administering  the  course,  but  also  as  a  counterbal- 
ance against  the  strongly  individualistic  influence  of 
text-book  work  in  the  training  of  the  child.  For  the 
spirit  of  co-operation,  the  give  and  take  required  in  all 
lines  of  social  activity  is  best  developed  through  exer- 


302         SOCIAL  PRINCIPLES  OF  EDUCATION 

cising  these  very  qualities  in  the  real  stress  of  actual 
experience. 

Few  factors  are  more  influential  in  shaping  the  atti- 
tude of  the  pupils  toward  the  school  than  the  spirit 
shown  toward  it  by  their  parents  and 
others  in  the  community.  The  child  im- 
itates his  standards  quite  as  readily  as  his 
manners.  Thoughtless,  irrelevant,  and  half-meant  crit- 
icism of  the  school  has  a  tendency  to  undermine  the 
child's  confidence  in  it,  and  hence  to  .weaken  his  loyalty 
toward  it.  The  efficiency  of  the  elementary  school  in 
particular  could  be  immensely  increased  by  the  sym- 
pathetic co-operation  of  the  patrons.  One  of  the  prob- 
lems in  the  organization  of  the  school  is,  therefore,  to 
secure  co-operation.  It  is  not  enough  to  say  that  the 
parents  should  have  enough  interest  in  the  school  to 
offer  their  full  co-operation  without  further  incentive 
than  the  welfare  of  their  children.  Social  problems 
must  be  taken  as  they  are  found;  and  the  fact  is  that 
patrons  have  very  little  knowledge  of,  or  touch  with, 
the  schools. 

But  this  seeming  lack  of  interest  on  the  part  of  par- 
ents must  not  be  misinterpreted.  The  American  people 
Lack  of  deeply  believe,  at  least  in  theory,  in  the 

interest  only  value  of  education.  The  chief  difficulty 
apparent  ^^  feen  fa^  under  the  older  concept  of 

education,  the  work  of  the  school  seemed  so  far  divorced 
from  the  interests  of  the  home  and  the  shop  or  the  store, 
that  there  was  little  point  of  contact  between  the  ex- 
perience of  the  parent  and  what  was  going  on  in  the 
school.  The  consequence  was  that  parents  did  not  feel 
that  they  understood  fully  the  activities  of  the  school 
or  were  competent  to  judge  them.  They  believed  that 


\ 


SOCIAL  ORGANIZATION   OF  THE   SCHOOL    303 

it  was  worth  while  to  educate  the  child  in  what  the 
school  offered,  but  concerning  the  process  of  education 
going  on  in  the  school  they  felt  themselves  unable  to 
understand  or  advise. 

Since  the  introduction  of  studies  more  closely  related 
to  the  social  activities,  this  attitude  on  the  part  of  the 
influence  of  patrons  of  the  schools  has  been  rapidly  dis- 
the  social  appearing.  It  has  been  found  that  par- 

ents freely  come  to  the  school  to  inspect 
the  work  done  in  manual  training,  domestic  science, 
agriculture,  and  allied  lines.  Here  are  fields  close 
enough  to  the  actual  affairs  in  which  parents  are 
themselves  engaged  to  make  them  feel  interested  in  the 
subjects.  Moreover,  parents  know  enough  about  these 
fields  to  be  able  to  judge  the  efficiency  of  the  work 
being  done  in  them. 

A  further  step  lies  just  ahead  in  the  social  organiza- 
tion of  the  elementary  school ;  this  is  to  make  the  school 
The  school  as  tne  social  and  intellectual  centre  for  the 
a  community  patronizing  community.  This  problem  is 
already  well  toward  solution  in  several  of 
the  larger  cities  of  the  country,  notably  in  New  York. 
Thousands  of  smaller  cities  and  towns  and  rural  com- 
munities have  not  yet  discovered  the  advantage  of  mak- 
ing the  school  building  the  neighborhood  centre.  It  is 
not  too  much  to  believe  that  the  school-house  of  the 
future  will  have  an  audience  room  capable  of  seating 
several  hundred  people,  and  one  or  more  reception-rooms 
for  social  purposes  in  addition  to  the  regular  equipment 
of  shops,  laboratories,  reading-rooms,  gymnasiums,  and 
the  like.  When  the  patrons  go  to  the  school-house  as  a 
matter  of  course  for  their  clubs  and  societies,  for  their 
lectures  and  entertainments,  and  occasionally  for  their 


304         SOCIAL  PRINCIPLES  OF  EDUCATION 

social  functions,  the  problem  of  the  divorcement  of  the 
school  from  the  home  and  community  spirit  will  be  well 
toward  settlement. 

And  what  is  more  natural  than  that  the  centre  for 
the  education  of  the  young  should  also  be  the  centre 
for  continuing  the  education  of  the  elders.  On  the 
other  hand,  what  is  farther  from  a  wise  educational 
policy  on  the  part  of  society  than  to  make  a  large  and 
permanent  investment  in  buildings  and  equipment  for 
educational  purposes,  and  then  lock  them  up  for  eigh- 
teen hours  out  of  every  day  during  three-quarters  of  the 
year  and  all  the  time  during  the  remainder  of  the  year? 
That  the  type  of  school  buildings  would  need  to  be  mod- 
ified somewhat  to  meet  this  wider  sphere  of  usefulness 
is  true,  as  has  already  been  suggested,  but  the  educa- 
tional benefits  would  be  out  of  all  proportion  to  the 
additional  cost. 

The  wider  concept  of  the  social  organization  of  the 
school  has  already  resulted  in  offering  the  advantage  of 
Extension  of  ^e  scno°l  m  the  evening  to  those  who  are 
the  functions  obliged  to  work  during  the  day,  but  who 
of  the  school.  desire  to  continue  their  education.  The 
evening  school  has  become  a  regular  part  of  the  educa- 
tional system  in  most  of  the  larger  cities,  and  will  no 
doubt  be  extended  as  occasion  requires.  A  more  re- 
cent line  of  extension  has  been  in  the  direction  of  va- 
cation schools.  While  these  schools  differ  much  in  the 
character  of  the  work  offered  during  the  summer  months, 
one  general  principle  seems  to  underlie  their  aim ;  namely, 
to  afford  the  child  an  opportunity  for  the  pursuit  of  in- 
teresting and  profitable  lines  of  study  not  available  in 
connection  with  the  pupil's  work  of  the  regular  year. 
This  work  constitutes,  therefore,  a  change,  and  much 


SOCIAL  ORGANIZATION  OF  THE  SCHOOL    305 

of  it  a  recreation.  Prominent  among  the  vacation  sub- 
jects are  the  various  handicrafts,  domestic  science,  art, 
nature  study,  and  physical  training.  These  schools  have 
been  enthusiastically  received  both  by  pupils  and  pa- 
trons, and  bid  fair  to  become  an  integral  part  of  our 
educational  system. 

IV.    The  Organization  of  the  High  School 

The  problems  of  high-school  organization  are  identical 
at  many  points  with  the  problems  of  organization  pre- 
sented by  the  elementary  school.  In  both 
common'o  instances  it  is  to  be  remembered  that  the 
elementary  •  school,  while  it  exists  for  the  ultimate  pur- 
schooif11  Pose  °f  preparing  children  for  social  effi- 

ciency as  adults,  must  primarily  exist  for 
the  child  as  he  lives  to-day's  life  here  and  now.  That 
is  to  say,  the  only  way  to  prepare  for  ultimate  efficiency 
is  to  make  sure  that  the  individual  lives  efficiently  in  the 
present.  True,  this  present  is  never  to  be  understood 
as  complete  in  itself,  but  always  in  the  light  of  what  it 
is  moving  toward;  the  interests  and  attitudes  of  the 
child  are  never  an  end  in  themselves,  but  are  to  be  in- 
terpreted as  related  to  a  final  outcome  in  experience. 
Giving  the  present  this  broader  meaning,  then,  we  may 
say  that  the  basis  of  the  social  organization  of  both 
elementary  and  high  school  is  the  present  social  inter- 
ests and  activities  of  the  pupils.  This  is  the  point  of 
contact  between  the  individual  and  the  school  as  a  so- 
cial organization. 

We  are  often  told  that  education  is  "preparation  for 
life."  Education  is  life.  The  only  preparation  for  life 
is  life  itself;  the  only  way  to  learn  a  thing  is  to  live  it. 


306         SOCIAL  PRINCIPLES  OF  EDUCATION 

Youth  is  not  primarily  interested  in  preparing  for  life,  but 
in  living.  If  any  form  of  school  organization  or  activ- 
Both  related  *ty  *s  to  receiye  a  fuu<  response,  therefore, 
to  immediate  it  must  itself  represent  vital  experience, 

needs  of  pupils.    ^   n<)t   ^^   ^^   ^  SQme  remote  end 

Applying  these  generalizations  to  our  problem,  we  may 
say,  then,  that  the  high  school  must  be  organized 
not  primarily  for  prospective  men  and  women,  but  for 
adolescent  boys  and  girls.  Just  as  we  found  the  funda- 
mental principle  for  the  organization  of  the  elementary 
school  in  the  nature  of  the  child,  so  we  shall  find  the  prin- 
ciple for  the  organization  of  the  high  school  in  the  nature 
of  the  adolescent  youth. 

It  is  necessary  first  of  all  to  recognize  the  fact  that 
the  high  school  presents  certain  very  different  problems 
from  the  elementary  school.  In  passing 
over  ^rom  tne  elementary  school  to  the 
school  and  high  school,  the  individual  also  passes  over 
schoointary  fr°m  childhood  to  youth.  Profound  phys- 
ical changes  take  place,  and  these  are  ac- 
companied by  mental  changes  and  modifications  of  atti- 
tude no  less  deep. 

The  child  of  the  elementary  school,  even  if  found 
occasionally  in  overt  rebellion  against  authority,  is,  on 
Adolescent  ^e  wn°le>  under  a  regime  of  authority, 
changes  in  He  takes  his  standards,  beliefs,  and  atti- 
tudes ready  made,  imitating  them  from  his 
elders.  He  does  not  pause  to  question  the  sanctions  for 
right  and  wrong;  for  him  right  is  what  he  is  allowed 
to  do,  and  wrong  what  he  is  forbidden  to  do.  But  with 
adolescence  a  change  comes  about;  a  new  consciousness 
of  self  arises.  The  youth  finds  himself  able  to  think,  to 
judge  for  himself.  He  now  subjects  the  standards,  be- 


SOCIAL  ORGANIZATION  OF  THE  SCHOOL    307 

Kefs,  and  attitudes  of  childhood  to  examination,  and 
makes  them  his  own  in  a  new  sense,  or  rejects  them. 
His  thinking  may  be  illogical  and  crude,  but  he  thinks. 
He  is  no  longer  a  puppet;  it  is  even  probable  that  he 
becomes  very  arrogant  in  the  new-found  freedom  of  his 
thought. 

The  emotional  reconstruction  of  adolescence  is  per- 
haps even  more  marked  than  the  intellectual.  New 
Changes  in  emotions  arise,  not  only  creating  hitherto 
emotional  unknown  problems  in  their  own  right,  but 

_ iAji^       J 

also  necessitating  a  readjustment  among 
the  complex  of  emotions  already  familiar.  The  new  emo- 
tional meaning  of  the  opposite  sex  begins  to  define  itself, 
and  values  undreamt  of  in  childhood  assert  themselves. 
Insistent  impulses  create  new  problems  of  control.  The 
fanciful  and  indistinct  ideals  of  earlier  youth  begin  to 
crystallize  into  ambitions  and  plans.  The  childish  no- 
tions concerning  desirable  vocations  are  given  up  and 
the  matter  of  a  desirable  occupation  seriously  consid- 
ered. Practical  considerations  begin  to  control  in  a  new 
way;  activities  pursued  must  not  only  have  a  value  of 
their  own,  but  must  relate  to  plans  for  the  future.  The 
youth  begins  to  reach  out  for  the  larger  estate  which  he 
is  approaching. 

Accompanying  these  intellectual  and  emotional 
changes,  the  adolescent  also  undergoes  a  great  change 
Change  in  m  ^s  attitude  toward  authority.  As  a 
attitude  toward  child  he  expected  to  obey  constituted  au- 
thority, just  because  it  was  authority.  He 
did  not  question  the  adaptability  of  the  regulations  in 
the  home  or  the  school,  but  conformed  to  them  when  he 
was  required  to,  or  violated  them  when  he  found  the 
opportunity.  But  he  did  not  go  so  far  as  to  question 


308         SOCIAL  PRINCIPLES  OF  EDUCATION 

the  sanctions  by  which  this  authority  was  constituted 
and  put  in  control  over  him.  He  was  a  child,  and  chil- 
dren were  expected  to  obey. 

The  attitude  of  the  adolescent  is  very  different.     He 

feels  himself  no  longer  a  child,  and  bitterly  resents  being 

treated  as  one.    He  feels  that  he  has  a 

Sd°epSidence.  riSht  to  his  own  Judgment  in  many  mat- 
ters, and  questions  by  what  right  others 
are  in  authority  over  him.  This  attitude  often  becomes 
exaggerated  to  the  degree  that  the  adolescent  youth  is 
something  of  an  anarchist,  and  ready  to  recognize  no 
authority  not  first  fully  consented  to  by  himself.  It  is 
a  notable  fact  that  by  far  the  greater  proportion  of  the 
boys  and  girls  who  run  away  from  home  in  rebellion, 
leave  during  the  period  of  this  reconstruction  in  the  at- 
titude toward  submission  to  authority. 

One  of  the  mistakes  that  may  be  made  in  the  organi- 
zation of  the  high  school  is  the  failure  to  recognize  the 
difference  between  it  and  the  elementary  school  rendered 
necessary  by  the  attitude  and  spirit  of  adolescence. 
This  is  not  to  say  that  the  whims,  the  follies,  and  the 
arrogance  of  adolescence  are  to  determine  the  organiza- 
tion of  the  high  school.  It  is  rather  to  suggest  that  there 
are  certain  fundamental  facts  of  human  nature  and  de- 
velopment emerging  at  this  time,  which  must  be  taken 
into  account  if  the  high  school  is  to  relate  itself  vitally 
to  the  lives  of  its  pupils. 

The  organization  of  the  high  school  must, 
schoofmust  therefore,  first  of  all  provide  for  a  large 
provide  for  measure  of  self-control  over  conduct.  It 

self-control  •  ,  i  •  r    ,1  •       T  • 

ofpupUs.  ls  n°t  the  province  of  this  discussion  to 

advise  whether  this  be  accomplished  by 

means  of  what  is  called  student  government,  or  other- 


SOCIAL  ORGANIZATION  OF  THE  SCHOOL    309 

wise.  The  movement  toward  student  government  has 
not  gone  far  enough  in  the  high  school  to  prove  its 
wisdom,  and  probably  will  not  receive  wide  acceptance. 
But  without  this  precise  form  of  machinery,  the  chief 
motives  for  control  of  conduct  can  be  found  in  the  pu- 
pils themselves,  and  be  brought  to  bear  on  the  govern- 
ment of  the  school.  This  does  not  mean  that  conduct 
in  the  high  school  shall  be  less  controlled  than  now;  it 
will  be  better  controlled  if  the  organization  is  properly 
effected.  Adolescent  boys  and  girls  have  in  them  the 
requisite  qualities  o  seriousness  and  responsiveness  to 
social  necessity  to  control  their  own  conduct  for  the 
common  good,  when  once  they  see  the  opportunity  and 
the  problem.  That  this  is  true  is  being  proved  in 
many  of  our  best  high  schools  at  the  present  time. 

Not  only  does  the  standpoint  of  school  organization 
that  places  the  chief  responsibility  for  control  of  con- 
School  conduct  duct  on  the  individual  himself  tend  to 
to  be  related  eliminate  a  chief  source  of  strain  between 
to  ail  conduct  £eachers  an(j  pUpilSj  but  it  accomplishes 
an  even  more  important  thing:  it  trains  the  pupil  to 
subjective  standards  of  conduct  and  develops  a  reflec- 
tive attitude  toward  ethical  problems  School  experi- 
ence is  full  of  situations  involving  questions  of  conduct 
that  are  typical  of  questions  constantly  met  in  the 
course  of  social  activities  outside  the  school.  If  the 
individual  is  led  to  recognize  in  each  of  these  situations 
the  ethical  problem  involved,  and  to  assume  personal 
responsibility  toward  it,  a  most  important  bond  has 
been  established  between  the  school  and  social  experi- 
ence. 

Any  plan  of  high-school  organization  is  therefore  to 
be  condemned  that  places  the  responsibility  for  the 


310         SOCIAL  PRINCIPLES  OF  EDUCATION 

pupil's  conduct  wholly  or  chiefly  on  the  teacher.  Reci- 
tations or  examinations  must  not  be  so  organized  and 
conducted  as  to  cause  the  pupil  to  feel  that 
responsibility  there  is  to  be  a  game  of  wits  played  be- 
t0  bddd~  tween  himself  and  the  constituted  author- 

ity of  the  school.  If  such  is  the  pupil's 
interpretation  of  the  situation,  he  can  bluff  or  cheat, 
priding  himself  that  he  has  beaten  in  the  game,  and 
have  no  qualms  of  conscience;  for  it  was  all  a  part  of 
the  game.  The  oversight  of  an  assembly  room  or  a  class 
must  not  be  so  organized  that  a  premium  is  placed  on 
sharp  conduct,  trickery,  and  evasion.  The  double  stand- 
ard of  morals  growing  out  of  just  such  situations  as  these 
constitutes  one  of  the  greatest  weaknesses  of  our  school 
system.  There  is  all  too  general  a  feeling  on  the  part 
of  the  pupils  that  immoral  acts  committed  in  school  are 
of  different  quality  from  immoral  acts  committed  out- 
side of  school,  since  school  experiences  are  in  some  way 
conceived  as  divorced  from  the  real  experience  of  so- 
ciety. Such  a  standpoint  makes  the  school,  the  chosen 
instrument  of  society  for  socializing  the  individual,  a 
means  of  cultivating  the  habit  of  shifting  moral  respon- 
sibility and  juggling  with  ethical  values. 

In  co-educational  high  schools,  the  social  relations  of 
the  sexes  creates  one  of  the  most  difficult  and  insistent 
problems  of  organization.     It  is  during  the 
of°the  sexes?118    high-school  age  that  a  complete  transfor- 
mation takes  place  in  the  attitude  of  the 
sexes  toward  each  other.    The  old  playfellowship  and 
comradery  of  the  elementary  school  has  been  supplanted 
by  an  attitude  of  shyness  and  diffidence,  which,  never- 
theless, only  masks  an  irresistible  impulsion  of  each  to- 
ward the  other  by  a  law  of  nature  as  old  as  life  itself. 


SOCIAL  ORGANIZATION  OF  THE  SCHOOL    311 

Thoughts  of  the  other  sex  occupy  an  amazingly  large 
proportion  of  the  time  of  adolescent  boys  and  girls. 
They  seek  each  other's  company  in  a  social  way.  Par- 
ties are  planned,  excursions  organized,  or  social  functions 
projected  with  a  view  to  being  in  each  other's  presence. 
Now,  all  this  is  natural  and  right,  but  it  has  a  tendency 
to  run  to  excess,  if  not  into  undesirable  or  dangerous 
lines. 

Two  types  of  solution  have  been  attempted  in  dealing 
with  this  problem  in  the  school.  One  is  to  forbid  all 
manifestations  of  interest  in  the  other  sex 
involved!8  ^  connection  with  the  activities  of  the 
school  and  to  ignore  the  existence  of  the 
social  impulse.  The  other  is  to  recognize  the  natural- 
ness and  inevitableness  of  the  impulses  leading  to  these 
new  social  relations  of  the  sexes,  and  provide,  through 
the  activities  of  the  school,  some  means  for  their  expres- 
sion and  guidance.  It  is  hardly  necessary  to  say  that 
the  first  of  these  methods  does  not  meet  the  problem. 
The  great  dominating  impulses  of  nature  are  not  to  be 
suppressed  by  rules  and  regulations,  and  they  continue 
to  act  even  if  they  are  ignored  or  deplored.  To  take  a 
negative  attitude  toward  the  social  relations  of  the 
pupils  is  only  to  divorce  the  school  still  further  from  the 
problems  of  social  experience. 

A  recognition  of  the  part  to  be  played  by  the  social 
impulse  in  the  development  of  the  adolescent  will  re- 
quire that  the  organization  of  the  high 

The  school  as  i       i  •  j       <•        •  ,  • 

a  social  centre.  scno°l  provide  for  its  proper  expression. 
If  the  school,  as  suggested  in  the  preced- 
ing section,  comes  to  be  the  accepted  intellectual  and 
social  centre  for  the  entire  community,  it  can  naturally 
assume  the  general  direction  of  social  functions  of  its 


312         SOCIAL  PRINCIPLES  OF  EDUCATION 

pupils  arranged  under  the  organization  of  the  school. 
Various  high  schools  throughout  the  country  have  al- 
ready undertaken  this  function  with  excellent  promise 
of  success.  More  or  less  formal  parties,  dances,  dra- 
matic entertainments,  debates,  musical  entertainments, 
and  athletic  contests  are  among  the  different  social 
events  carried  out. 

One  of  the  first  advantages  from  the  oversight  exer- 
cised by  the  high  school  over  the  social  relations  of  its 
art  pupils  is  to  provide  clean  and  suitable  en- 

the  school  tertainment  for  its  young  people.  This 
in  controlling  js  fae  £rsj.  sj-ep  jn  defending  our  youth 

social  relations.  .  .    r   .  °  J 

against  the  insidious  evils  of  the  cheap 
theatre  and  amusement  halls  of  the  cities,  and  against 
the  hardly  less  dangerous  monotony  of  the  smaller  town. 
A  second  advantage  comes  through  giving  the  high 
school  better  regulative  control  over  social  clubs,  fra- 
ternities, and  sororities  which  have  sprung  up  within  re- 
cent years  in  the  high  schools.  The  social  organization 
of  the  high  school  must  be  democratic,  and  hence  can- 
not permit  exclusive  organizations  to  gain  a  foothold. 
The  remedy  here,  as  already  suggested,  is  primarily  to 
give  opportunity  for  expression  of  the  social  impulse  in 
more  healthful  ways,  and  to  suppress  the  undesirable  by 
substituting  something  better  than  that  which  is  taken 
away. 

And  so  we  might  go  on  through  the  various  matters  of 
relationship  between  the  pupils  and  the  high-school  or- 

ganization.  But  the  same  principle  under- 
of  social  lies  all  the  problems.  The  social  organiza- 

organization       tjon  of  ^g  m'gh  school,  like  its  intellectual 

of  high  school.  .        .         ° 

organization  in  the  curriculum,  must  start 
from  the  fundamental  nature  of  adolescence  and  pro- 


SOCIAL  ORGANIZATION  OF  THE  SCHOOL    313 

ceed  toward  social  efficiency  as  its  aim.  Social  and  eth- 
ical judgments  later  to  be  demanded  must  have  their 
prototype  in  the  life  of  the  school.  The  honesty  and 
fairness  required  in  all  social  relations  outside  the  school 
must  be  demanded  and  grounded  by  school  problems 
and  situations.  The  subjective  sanctions  for  conduct 
necessary  to  personal  freedom  must  find  stimulus  and 
encouragement  in  the  school.  In  short,  the  high  school 
in  its  organization  must  present,  not  a  section  of  experi- 
ence isolated  and  cut  off  from  the  remainder  of  present 
or  prospective  experience,  but  must  itself  constitute  an 
integral  and  vital  part  of  a  growing  experience  that 
leads  without  break  immediately  out  into  concrete  and 
efficient  social  participation. 


REFERENCES 

Brown,  Our  National  Ideals  in  Education;  Button  and  Snedden, 
Administration  of  Public  Education  in  the  United  Slates;  Gilbert, 
The  School  and  Its  Life;  Hanus,  A  Modern  School;  Suzzalo,  The 
School  as  a  Social  Institution;  Tompkins,  School  Management; 
Young,  Isolation  in  the  School. 


INDEX 


Activity  and  development,  199. 

Adolescence:  Changes  in  attitude, 
307;  determining  high-school 
organization,  306. 

Aim:  Disciplinary  in  education, 
243;  educational,  32,  42,  99; 
and  social  efficiency,  243;  ex- 
perience as  a  criterion  of,  37; 
nature  of ,  3  2 ;  and  social  progress, 
35;  guiding  the  social  process,  43; 
man's  search  for,  34. 

America:  Factors  in  development 
of,  223;  materialism  in,  224; 
technological  education  in,  106. 

Arithmetic:  In  elementary  schools, 
261;  social  content  of,  262. 

Art  in  elementary  schools,  267. 

Artist,  the:  As  an  educator,  112; 
the  work  of,  in. 

Attention:  And  development,  179; 
and  interest,  180. 

Attitude:  Importance  of,  240;  to- 
ward school,  241. 

Automatism,  tendency  toward, 
179. 

Avocations:  Classes  of,  120;  inci- 
dental, 127;  mental,  123;  place 
of  in  education,  114;  physical, 
12 1 ;  rise  of  in  society,  114;  the 
school  and,  129. 

Bond,  the  social:  Function  of  the 
social,  10;  nature  of  the  social, 
n,  24. 

Business:  Training  for,  103;  prob- 
lem of  vocations,  102;  as  a  voca- 
tion, 101. 

Capacities:  For  control,  162;  for 
impression,  135;  for  interpre- 
tation, 148. 


Change:  And  progress,  33;  uni- 
versality of,  32. 

Child,  the:  In  the  home,  63;  in- 
fancy of,  195;  and  his  parents, 
63;  and  school,  86. 

Church,  the:  Crisis  in,  77;  and 
education,  74;  function  of,  73; 
social  nature  of,  71;  social  pro- 
gramme of,  72;  and  religious 
education,  77. 

Citizenship  and  education,  83. 

Colleges:  Business,  104;  entrance 
requirements,  253,  269. 

Community,  the:  Recent  changes 
in,  69;  and  the  child,  67;  duties 
of,  70;  and  the  school,  92;  school 
as  centre  of,  303;  spirit  of,  302. 

Conscience,  awakening  of,  85. 

Control:  Direction •  of ,  165;  over 
environment,  184;  measure  of 
education,  164;  mental,  176; 
physical,  166;  powers  of,  162; 
self-control  in  high  school,  308; 
social,  188;  sources  of,  164. 

Culture:  As  an  aim  in  education, 
243;  social  nature  of,  231. 

Curriculum,  the:  Changes  in,  260; 
content  of,  247;  diagram  of, 
opp.  287;  the  old  disciplinary, 
260;  of  elementary  school,  261; 
factors  determining,  249;  func- 
tion of,  231,  234;  for  girls,  276; 
of  high  school,  268;  organiza- 
tion of,  279,  289;  social  origin  of, 
231- 

Death,  place  of  in  progress,  27. 
Democracy:  Foes  of,  83;    nature 

of,  83. 
Development:  And   control,    163; 

and  environment,  136;  and  imi- 


315 


316 


INDEX 


tation,  209;  of  the  individual, 
23;  and  language,  216;  laws  of, 
199;  nature  of,  192;  and  sug- 
gestion, 213. 

Discipline:  As  an  aim  in  education, 
243,  275;  in  arithmetic,  261;  in 
the  elementary-school  curricu- 
lum, 260;  in  grammar,  263;  in 
the  high-school  curriculum,  268. 

Divorce  of  parents  and  children, 


Ear,  sensory  limitations  of,  138. 

Economic  necessity:  As  a  social 
bond,  n;  as  a  stimulus,  15. 

Education:  Aim  in,  32;  as  a  selec- 
tive agent,  41;  and  the  artist, 
112;  business,  103;  and  the 
church,  74;  and  the  community, 
67;  definition  of,  44,  164;  as 
discipline,  243;  unorganized  fac- 
tors of.  43,  226;  function  of,  137; 
and  home,  60;  industrial,  99; 
and  social  institutions,  58;  means 
and  ends  of,  47;  and  play,  122; 
professional,  109;  and  the  school, 
86;  scientific,  107;  social,  21; 
and  the  state,  79;  support  of,  83; 
technological,  104;  and  voca- 
tions, 95;  waste  in,  88. 

English  in  the  high  school,  273. 

Environment:  Community,  67; 
control  over,  184;  and  develop- 
ment, 136;  home,  59;  limited  by 
impressions  from,  135;  physical 
in  education,  222;  social  in  edu- 
cation, 225. 

Ethics:  Individual  basis  for,  20, 
182;  instinctive  basis  for,  181; 
social  basis  for,  182. 

Evolution:  Social,  and  vocations, 

95;  as  teleology,  33. 
^.Experience:  As  a  measure  of  aim, 

"  37;  as  a  norm,  40;  as  a  process, 
38;  as  a  product,  39;  recon- 
struction of  as  education,  46, 
164;  social  nature  of,  38;  vo- 
cations and,  97. 


Expression:  And  development,  205; 

neglect   of   in   education,    176; 

physical,  171. 
Eye,  the  sensory  limitations  of, 

138. 

Family,  the:  Threefold  basis  of, 
60;  social  changes  in,  60;  and 
the  individual,  59. 

Feeling:  Classes  of,  161;  functions 
of,  156;  as  a  mode  of  interpre- 
tation, 155. 

Finances  of  the  school,  299. 

Geography:  In  elementary  school, 
264;  social  content  of,  264. 

Girls  and  the  high-school  curricu- 
lum, 275. 

God,  concepts  of,  71. 

Grading,  limitations  by,  300. 

Grammar  in  elementary  schools, 
262. 

Hand,  the:  As  a  tool  of  expression, 

175;  education  of,  176. 
Handicrafts,   the:   In  elementary 

schools,  266;  in  high  school,  286. 
High  school,  the:  Curriculum  of, 

267;  social  organization  of,  305. 

Ideals,  social,  and  the  curriculum, 
241. 

Imitation:  And  development,  209; 
social,  19;  and  suggestion,  213. 

Impression:  Capacities  for,  135; 
physical.  137;  social,  141;  types 
of,  136. 

Incentives:  Economic,  14;  social, 
14,  203. 

Individual,  the:  Attributes  of,  194; 
contributions  of,  22,  24;  as  a 
bearer  of  social  culture,  25;  de- 
velopment of,  192;  and  educa- 
tion, 58;  and  family,  59;  ini- 
tiative of,  20,  57;  obligations  of, 
30;  powers  and  capacities  of, 
133;  and  progress,  27;  and  soci- 
ety, 5,  22;  and  state,  82. 


INDEX 


317 


Industries:  In  the  home,  61;  im- 
portance of  in  education,  97; 
training  in,  99. 

Infancy,  biological  meaning  of,  195. 

Instinct  and  development,  207. 

Institutions:  Conservation  of,  28; 
social  divorcement  of,  48;  and 
education,  92;  evolution  of,  55; 
social  nature  of,  56. 

Interest:  And  attention,  180;  as 
a  motive,  202. 

Interpretation:  Through  feeling, 
155;  through  knowledge,  149; 
powers  of,  148. 

Knowledge:  Function  of,  150;  nat- 
ure of,  149;  as  science,  152. 

Labor:  Dignity  of,  98;  division  of, 
99. 

Language:  Ancient  in  high  school, 
272;  and  development,  216;  ex- 
pression through,  174;  rise  of 
impulse,  216;  modern  in  high 
school,  273. 

Latin  in  high  school,  272. 

Leaders,  function  of,  28. 

Man  and  his  environment,  165. 

Mathematics  in  the  high  school, 
272. 

Method,  logical  versus  psycho- 
logical, 281. 

Mind,  the:  At  birth,  177;  develop- 
ment of,  177. 

Morality:  Individual,  20,  182;  in- 
stinctive, 181;  levels  of,  181; 
social,  21, 182. 

Motives:  Economic,  14;  emotion 
as  a  motive,  202;  self-realization 
as  a  motive,  217;  social,  203. 

Music  in  elementary  schools,  267. 

Nature,  man's  control  over,  187. 
N.  E.  A.,  the  influence  of,  252. 


Observation,  need  for  training,  140. 


Organization:  Of  elementary 
school,  297;  of  high  school,  306; 
principles  of,  312;  social  of 
school,  291. 

Pain  as  a  motive,  203. 

Parents:  New  demands  upon,  66; 
divorcement  from  children,  63. 

Personality:  As  a  model,  144; 
value  of,  219. 

Philosophy:  .Method  of,  2;  mean- 
ing and  problem  of,  i;  scope 
of,  i. 

Physiology :  In  elementary  schools, 
265;  social  content  of,  266. 

Plasticity:  And  education,  197;  as 
a  basis  for  development,  194. 

Play:  Classes  of,  120;  and  educa- 
tion, 116;  incidental,  127;  men- 
tal, 123;  necessity  for,  115;  phys- 
ical, 121 ;  social,  124;  spirit  of, 
118. 

Pleasure  as  a  motive,  203. 

Powers:  Of  control,  162;  of  im- 
pression, 135;  of  interpretation, 
148;  nature  of,  44, 133. 

Professions:  Education  and,  no; 
place  of,  109. 

Pupil,  the:  Attitude  of,  293;  num- 
ber of  pupils  under  teacher,  299. 

Reality:  Found  in  the  concrete, 
37;  of  religion,  71. 

Recreations:  Classes  of,  120;  ne- 
cessity for,  115. 

Religion:  And  feeling,  160;  as  a 
social  bond,  n. 

Response:  And  development,  93; 
and  stimulus,  193;  and  sugges- 
tion, 214. 

School,  the:  Attendance,  188;  and 
avocations,  122,  128;  buildings 
and  equipment,  298;  and  com- 
munity, 92;  as  community  cen- 
tre, 303 ,311;  demands  upon,  9 1 ; 
social  divorcement  of,  48;  in- 
creased functions  of,  304;  and 
the  home,  64;  as  a  social  insti- 


318 


INDEX 


tution,  go;  as  an  instrument  of 
education,  228;  social  organiza- 
tion of,  292;  tests  of,  87;  waste 
in,  88. 

Science:  Contributions  of,  107;  as 
social  control,  153;  and  educa- 
tion, 109;  method  of,  282;  so- 
cial nature  of,  152;  and  tech- 
nique, 1 86. 

Selective  agent:  Education  as  a, 
42;  necessity  of,  41. 

Self,  the:  And  its  activity,  198, 
201;  appreciation  of,  220;  and 
control,  165;  nature  of,  167; 
the  physical,  167;  realization  as 
a  motive,  217;  rise  of  concept  of, 
218. 

Senses,  the  limitations  in  range  of, 

137- 

Sexes,  the  social  relations  of  in  edu- 
cation, 310. 

Social  bond,  the:  Function  of,  10; 
nature  of,  n,  24. 

Social  efficiency  as  an  aim  in  edu- 
cation, 245. 

Social  process,  the:  And  aim  in 
education,  43;  analysis  of,  52; 
nature  of,  51;  summary  of,  129. 

Society:  Organized  activities  of, 
18;  individualistic  concept  of, 
6;  organic  concept  of,  28;  so- 
cialistic concept  of,  7;  contribu- 
tions of  to  individual,  13;  cri- 
teria of  for  conduct,  20;  deter- 
mining curriculum,  256;  as  a 
"medium"  for  development,  13; 
conservative  nature  of,  28;  ob- 
ligations of,  30;  stimuli  from, 
14,  141,  222. 


Speech  and  expression,  174. 

State,  the:  And  education,  75; 
functions  of,  80;  and  the  indi- 
vidual, 82;  nature  of,  79. 

Stimulus:  And  development,  193; 
economic  necessity  as  a,  13; 
language  as  a,  216;  social  press- 
ure as  a,  14,  143,  221;  physical 
environment  as  a,  137. 

Suggestion :  And  development,  213; 
and  imitation,  213. 

Sunday  school,  the:  And  religious 
education,  76;  inefficiency  of,  77. 

Teaching:  As  a  profession,  89; 
waste  in,  89. 

Technique  and  science,  186. 

Technology:  Contributions  of ,  105; 
and  education,  106;  place  of  in 
education,  104. 

Teleology:  Nature  of,  33;  in  dif- 
ferent realms,  34. 

Tradition,  influence  of  in  curricu- 
lum, 249. 

Utility  as  an  aim  in  education,  243. 

Values,  educational,  and  aim,  36. 

Vocations:  And  educational  aim, 
99;  of  the  artist,  in;  the  busi- 
ness, 101;  industrial,  98;  in- 
terrelations of,  96;  professional, 
109;  and  social  progress,  95,  97; 
scientific,  107;  technological,  104. 

Waste:  In  education,  88;  in  life, 
35- 

Youth,  its  paradoxes,  198. 


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